Thundersnow
by 0ddity
Summary: Thundersnow "an unusual kind of thunderstorm with snow falling as the primary precipitation instead of rain. It typically falls in regions of strong upward motion within the cold sector of an extra tropical cyclone." To sum it up, strange. Summary in first chapter. UtaxOc (a little bit of YomoxOc) (bit OC-centric) (a tinsy bit of OOC)
1. Chapter 1: Silence

**Raiu and Koyuki both grew up in a harsh reality of who people really were. They were trained, educated, and shipped to Japan to work for an underground company. Before this, they thought the rumors of the creatures "Ghouls" were false, but they came to the truth much too quickly. At their job they put their lives on the line with every job. Then one day they meet two people who show them the inside lives of Ghouls, the one they never knew about until now.**

 **This story will be Romance/Humor/Horror. It is Mature rating for sexual themes, horrific scenes, and (a LOT of) language. Please read past the first chapter, before judging. -0**

* * *

Chapter One.

 _Silence._

"You don't know how to stop do you?" Koyuki hummed, sipping from her mug of fresh, black coffee.

Raiu glared at her the best she could while keeping her head tilted back and the tissue to her nose. They witnessed a boy bad mouthing some poor girl and Raiu just had to step in. The guy got off worse but she didn't leave unscathed. She suffered a spilt lip and bloody nose. Koyuki didn't like abuse as much as the next person but she didn't play hero like Raiu did every second.

Raiu never knew when to stop, ever. She was the loud and outgoing one. She was never afraid to state her opinion, not even the few times it almost got her killed. Raiu had an immense amount of apathy when it came to emotions. Sure she splayed emotions on the surface right and left, but on the inside, no one really ever knew how she actually felt.

She was quite small for her age at only being 5'3" and slender, she was often mistaken for a child. It didn't help that she was completely and miserably flat. She was fifteen after all, she was a teenager and acted like one. She was rowdy and cruel and preferred to live in the now.

She held an odd job in the 12th ward. She and her sister lived in the 13th ward. They lived near the border to the 4th ward in a nice pent house apartment. With the earnings they both made from said odd job, they lived comfortably in such a spacious place. Her and her sister got along heavenly. They were partners after all. They did their jobs and earned a not-so honest profit. They didn't ask questions, just got paid.

That's how she liked it. She minded her own business until it became her business. She will only bother something if it bothers her. Yes, she may be rowdy and outgoing, but only to those she knows personally. She comes off as cold and stoic to those she doesn't. Koyuki likes to call it her "mask".

Koyuki.

Koyuki was the older of the two. Raiu reminds everyone that it's only by a year. Koyuki was the more level headed one. She was the calm and quiet one. She sat back and watched things unfold before jumping in. She calculated things from afar. She held a stone face almost all the time. She could lash back with enough sarcasm to wound even Raiu and Raiu was the queen of sarcasm.

She kept to herself most of the time. The only time she indulged in emotion was when she worked. When she worked the little emotion she shared was with Raiu. She was taller for her age with being around 5'8" and 16. She was a little curvy for her age but her cold eyes warded off any male who tried to come her way.

She held an odd job in the 12th ward with Raiu since they came to Tokyo a year ago. They were housed in the 13th ward by their "mother" and guardian. Sometimes Koyuki had to hunt down Raiu when she wandered too closely to the 4th ward. They earned a great deal of money, so much in fact that Koyuki paid for false identification cards for the both of them. To the world they were two American girls that moved here, but to those who knew them, they were home.

Koyuki and Raiu were not exactly sisters biologically. They were adopted together by their "mother" and shipped to Japan to work. They didn't even look much alike. Raiu was small and slender with ink colored hair and mint green eyes. She had a slender nose and a diamond shaped face. Koyuki was tall and curvy with white blonde hair and ocean blue eyes. She had a button nose and oval shaped face. Raiu often called her "doll face" because of her appearance. Koyuki would just call Raiu model trash. Raiu had porcelain skin and short, straight, choppy layered hair that touched her shoulders. Koyuki had sun kissed tan skin and long waves for hair that held high lights of white and low lights of brown.

They were currently sitting at a café near their apartment, but also much too close to the 4th ward and what lurks inside it. They lived comfortably with an uncomfortable job. What they didn't realize was that they were being watched. I guess you can say this is where our story begins.

Raiu's eyes still narrowed at her behind the fluff of the white tissue. "I guess not" Koyuki replied to herself, glancing around. The idle chatter of people nearby filled the empty void of their conversation. Koyuki watched the people around her closely yet not obviously. They were at the table farthest to the right, therefor Yuki could see everybody. There were two couples on either side of them. There was a silver haired boy with his back to her. The few moments she saw his face when he looked around, he seemed angry. She eyed him closely. He seemed nervous. He seemed like he'd never been in these parts before. She wondered if he'd just recently moved here. Poor guy, he probably didn't know his way around. Koyuki almost wanted to help him. She might be cold, but she's nice when she wants to be. He seemed around her age. She sipped her coffee as she watched a blonde haired boy sit at the table with him. The blonde looked a bit too eager to be there.

The blonde almost looked like a nuisance to the silver haired boy. She took her eyes off of them and back to Raiu who was trying to sip her coffee and hold a tissue to her nose at the same time. Suddenly, the third seat to their table scratched out, flipped around, and the blonde kid was sitting at their had his arms on the back of the seat with his head resting on them. He had short blonde hair pulled back with a headband. He wore sunglasses and a black hoodie with khaki pants. When he smiled at them, Koyuki noticed the ring in his lip. She already didn't like him.

Raiu was just had shocked at Yuki was. Raiu took the bloody tissue from her nose and examined it. She seemed satisfied with the lack of blood and stuffed it in her pocket. She looked from Koyuki to the boy. She saw Yuki wasn't going to say anything, so she did. "Excuse me, who are you?"

"Who are you?" He shot back, smiling at her. Raiu blinked. "Me? I asked you first." What a little shit. "Don't worry about that. I'll call you imouto," He said pointing at Raiu," and you onee-chan," he said pointing at Koyuki." She was about to tell him where he could shove those names before Yuki spoke up. "I'm not your sister." Yuki said calmly sipping her coffee. Raiu followed and did the same to get the taste of blood out of the back of her throat. He simply just sat there, staring at the two, as if waiting for them to do something. The silence enveloped them as the awkward grew. Koyuki looked past Raiu again and to the silver haired boy. He was now staring at the blonde boy in surprise. This wasn't good.

Time to go. She locked eyes with Raiu and the message was clear. Raiu stood and stretched. "Well, it was nice not chatting, see you never." Koyuki immediately stood and they both walked away. They had paid in advance so they could leave. As soon as their got around the corner, Raiu started spitting crap about him, wondering who the hell he thought he was. They left the boy sitting there smiling. They didn't see him drop his smile to a blank mask and then slowly smirk.

* * *

The sun had just gone down. The city didn't calm to the slightest. People walked busily and ignoring the obvious warning signs around them. People were told to stay in groups and never go in the dark. That's where bad things happened. That's where people go to die, or the unlucky wander upon. The people only heard whispers of the demons that lurked in the dark. The "Ghouls" as they were called fed off of humans. No normal person knew what a Ghoul looked like. If you did, you didn't survive the night.

To the outside world, the streets were quiet and sleeping. The air quiet and calm, which if you were inside, safe and sound, but not everybody was. Feet pounded the ground as fast as the man could run. He had seen her! He was told to watch out, but he didn't. A million thoughts raced through his head as he bolted into an ally way. Was she a Ghoul? He didn't see her feed off of the body, but he watched her kill him. He had just gotten done with a business deal with the man! They had left out of the back door and as soon as the door shut, she was there. She slit his throat right in front of her. She tossed his body on the ground as if he were nothing. he was so in shock he couldn't move. He saw a van pull up to the end of the ally and two people get out dressed exactly like her. Then he ran.

He ignored the warning signs that the News channels warned them not to be out so late. How stupid of him. Was this his end, because of his stupidity? His legs burned as he threw things behind him, hopefully making it harder for her to catch him. He didn't realize he was actually attracting the attention of others. He wanted to vomit right then and there. He could feel the hairs on the back of his neck rise as if she were right behind him the whole time. How could she be so calm with so much blood!? All that blood! It was sickening. He felt the bile rise in his throat as his chest burned already from his lungs wanting desperately to give out. He rounded a corner and skid to a stop in front of a wall.

He slammed his fists against it. No! He had to get away! He had to! His senses were heightened due to the adrenaline spike. His hearing so well that he heard the faintest sound of metal again concrete. He whipped around and saw the demon. She was standing with the weight shifted to one leg. A crocked metal pipe was in her right hand, dangling down and scraping the ground next to her. His scream caught in his throat with a lump and all he could manage was a soft, "Please." She giggled and tilted her head to the left. Her shoulders relaxed and arms limp. All he could see of her was her hair, black. Her face was hidden by a full faced gas-mask. Her body covered in grey baggy clothes and a black apron. She looked like a full fledged murderer right out of a movie. The black boots on her feet still had the splatter of blood on it from when his friend's body hit the ground. Her voice did nothing to help. It was low and haunting. It very well was the last thing he heard as she got much too close to him. She was only two feet away when he heard it. With tears streaming down his face and bile on the edge of his throat, tempting to come up, he heard his last words.

"I love it when they beg."

She held the pipe up above her head. He had no time to react before the pipe came down onto his face. It was enough brain damage to knock him out. She didn't stop. She kept going and crushed his wind pipe and cervical spinal cavity along with it.


	2. Chapter 2: Give Em Hell, Kid

Chapter Two.

 _Give Em Hell, Kid – My Chemical Romance_

Raiu happened to be sitting at the same café she was at last week. She also happened to be in the same outfit as last week as well. She donned black tights, furry brown boots, grey quarter sleeve shirt, and a red scarf. She finished her mug and set it down on the saucer. Raiu placed a tip on the table and left. It was beginning to get cold outside, which means she would go out more.

She loved the fall, and liked winter. Sure, the Sakura trees were lovely in the spring but nothing could beat the beauty of fall and winter. Raiu didn't agree with most when they said everything was ugly and dead. Yes, everything tended to die but it was pretty to her. Death was beautiful to her. It was the cycle of life and everyone had to go through it. Was she afraid of death? She didn't have a reason to be. In her line of work she didn't have a choice. She was surrounded with death and she risked her life every job she took.

It had been a week since the blonde kids stuck his face around. Raiu couldn't tell if she was relieved or not. She hadn't asked Yuki-chan if she'd seen him either. She didn't know if she should be worried. Come to think of it, Raiu hadn't seen either the blonde kid or the silver haired kid since that night last week. Hmm. She thought back to the night she last saw him. She wasn't sure if that's what someone would call a good first impression. Hopefully she scared him away. It was the night of the day they met after-all.

* * *

 _She brought the rusted pipe down a third time to the man's skull. The scent of blood had already filled her nostrils but she inhaled the essence anyway. Blood always had an unmistakable scent. The initial inhale was of iron, then the coppery taste that invaded your throat. Even if you were human, it made your mouth water. The longer you inhale, the sweeter it becomes._ _Raiu was what someone might call sadistic when it came to death. She liked to watch the life leave the eyes and body of the fallen. She liked to watch the soul leave their lips. Other than the initial death of her prey, she enjoyed the smell of blood. It left a salty after taste in her mouth. She did rather enjoy salty and sweet things._

 _She wrenched the pipe out of the man's skull. She tossed it aside. It made a loud clinging sound as it struck the concrete. That might bring some unwanted attention, but at the moment, she didn't care. She was in her zone! This is what she did for a living and she enjoyed it!_ _She pulled a switchblade out of her work pants pocket and knelt by the body. She began to saw the limbs off the man. The sickening sounds of tendons snapping filled her ears. Behind her mask, she smirked. She really did enjoy this. The noises would surely bring attention from the local ghouls. She didn't need them to dampen her mood. She was already in a really bad part of the 4_ _th_ _ward. She needed to make quick work and scram before one of the locals showed up._

 _She was on the last limb when she heard the rumble of a van pull up to one of the alley's two exits. She cursed under her breath and ripped the last limb off. She stood and wiped her hands on the apron now stained in blood. The back of the van popped open and her partner hopped out. Together they slugged the body pieces into the pile that was the back of the van._

 _The thumps of the parts surely echoed out of the alley. If nobody knew they were here, then they did now. Her partner hopped back inside and tossed Raiu a bottle with the label torn off. Raiu caught it and set it on the ground. She shut the door and hit the van twice, signaling it to leave. She opened the bottle dumped the contents on the splatters of blood that stained the ground. The stench of bleach took over the smell of blood. It made Raiu gag. It always did._

 _"_ _Well, what is all this?" Raiu jumped form the voice and whipped around, the bottle dropping from her hands. Raiu went ridged when she came face to face with a group of people wearing masks. They all had on clown masks, except for the one in front. He wore a plain mask with stitches over the eyes. It looked like a voodoo doll. Raiu took a step back._ _"_ _Not much of a talker? I think I can help you with that." The voodoo boy leapt forward towards her. Raiu jumped backwards, landing on her hands, then pushing off to leap on the dumpster that was behind her. She tilted her head to the left at the voodoo kid. She wagged her finger at him, tauntingly. Was it a boy? She couldn't 100% tell. It was very slender like a girl, but voice of a boy. Whichever it was seemed to- "Hey boss! You gonna let a girl do that to you?" Boy. It was a boy. No doubt about that right there. Only guys would talk to other guys about girls like that and the fat fuck who said that was reeking of masculinity._

 _The "boss" paused and placed a hand on the mask. He pulled it off and stared at Raiu. It was the blonde guy! He smiled at her. It was then she noticed his eyes. It was the unmistakable red irises that only Ghouls held. Raiu swore under her breath. She had heard of a gang of Ghouls, but she didn't expect to run into them. They stayed exclusively to the 4_ _th_ _ward. Raiu swore again. The 4_ _th_ _ward is exactly where she was. Shit. His smile grew after she stay motionless._

 _"_ _Will you play with me?" He asked innocently._

 _She moved her head to the left and then slowly right. She had to keep a calm composure. Maybe, just maybe she could get out of this. She had heard they were strong, but she wasn't sure just how much. Keeping calm in situations like these has kept her alive many times before. He tsk'ed at her. "How rude." He went straight faced. "How rude," he continued, "You come into our turf and don't even show your face?"_ _She lifted her hand to the strap in the back that would release the mask from her face. Should she do this? Would this help or hurt the situation? Might as well do what he wants, if it is his turf like he said. She released the strap and tugged the mask off of her. She pursed her lips and kept her composure as she looked him dead in the eye._

 _His face lit up, "imouto!" The ghouls behind him looked at each other. One of them bravely spoke up, "Boss, but she's a human?" The blonde boy ignored the question and stepped forward. "Imouto, what are you doing here? Did you get lost?" His playful smile not exactly helping the situation._

 _Raiu crossed her arms, "As if." That caused an uproar. "Hey!" "Don't talk to our boss that way!" "Kill her boss!" "Eat her!" Raiu rolled her eyes and hopped off the dumpster. She sure hoped she wouldn't die from some kid. Even though she was a kid, she liked to act like she wasn't. She was a trained assassin that did side jobs for money! Not play babysitter to a brat._ _"_ _If you're done, I'll be on my way." She faked a yawn and turned to leave through the exit the van went through. She had about enough of this shit. She wanted nothing more than to sleep. It had been a long day for her and she sure as hell didn't need some kid annoying her._ _One brave voice called out, "Boss didn't say you could leave!"_

 _Raiu stopped. She slowly looked back at the small girl the words came from. She mustered up the harshest glare she could and pursed her lips. "I didn't ask him."_

* * *

Raiu pressed the button in the elevator to the corresponding level to which her apartment was on. Koyuki had gone out for groceries and she most likely was back. Raiu sucked at grocery shopping because she'd either get distracted by something and forget or buy way too much. She hummed along to the music before the doors opened back up shortly after. She strolled down to the third door to the left. After all there were only three doors. She fished her keys out of her pocket and stuck the correct one in the doorknob.

She opened the door to reveal a modern style living room/kitchen front room. On the left was the kitchen. It was a step up from the rest of the light wood hardwood flooring. The counter against the wall was a light silver with a grey counter top. The sink, fridge, and stove was a silver metal that was quite shiny. There was a half island with the same color scheme. On the right was a white couch and two loveseats with a painted light blue wood coffee table to match the walls. On the right wall was a rather large television mounted straight to the wall. Underneath that was a collection of games and movies on two shelves. On the end of end towards the back was an opening to the hallway. There were four doors in the hallway. Three on the right, which was Koyuki's room, Koyuki's bathroom, and Raiu's bathroom on the end. At the end of the hallway, on the end wall, was Raiu's bedroom. The entire back wall of the front room was a window over looking the city. They lived pretty high up so they had a great view. The front room was pretty large and spacious. Their whole floor plot was pretty large.

She really hoped Koyuki was back because she wanted something to eat. She hadn't eaten all day. The coffee was the only thing she had had. She walked through the four foot entryway. She looked left first. Koyuki hadn't been home. Raiu specially left a piece of tape holding the fridge closed to annoy Koyuki. It hadn't been touched. She could see the black electrical tape from where she stood.

She looked right. Everything seemed untouched other than the fact that a certain blonde haired brat was sitting on her couch. Her blood boiled. How dare he break into her house! Oh boy, was he in for a world of hurt. She stomped towards the idiot blond. She stomped around the couch and placed her hands on her hips. The prick had the audacity to have his arms thrown over the back of the couch. "Excuse me?"

"Welcome home. How was your day?" He smiled at her, crossing his leg over the other.

"Great, until I saw you. How did you get into my place?" She pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes at him.

"Picked the lock and why so sad to see me, imouto?" His smile grew.

"How do you even know where I live?" Her anger grew. Did he seriously want to test her patience? She didn't want to bother with him. He was a nuisance to her. Her scowl deepened when his grin turned eat shit. "I followed you." She groaned and pinched the bridge of her nose. She shifted her weight to one foot. "Get out." She pointed to the door. "How rude to kick out a guest." He teased. She groaned again and crossed the room to the kitchen, looking for food. She was too hungry to deal with his shit. She grabbed a bag of chips from one of the overhead cabinets. She popped it open and started snacking on them. She turned around. That shithead was watching her. She hopped on the counter and glared at him. "You better be gone before Koyuki gets home. I might deal with your shit but she won't." He stood, stretching his arms above his head. "How old are you Imouto, you look older than me." He walked towards her. He leaned over the counter with his chin propped up on his knuckles.

Silence remained between the two until a voice was heard from afar. "Raiu? Are you home?" It was Koyuki.


	3. Chapter 3: Bittersweet

Chapter Three.

 _Bittersweet – Panic! At the Disco_

Uta shifted through the clothes hanging in the closet. She had a strange taste in clothing. She was fashionable like himself. It was all black with a few dark reds and greys. He held up a long sleeve shirt that was practically see-through. He found that it would fit him as he held the fabric to him. He liked it. He might take it. In fact he liked her room.

Her bed was pushed against the right wall. She had a desk on the left wall decorated with various things. Her walls were bare and painted a deep purple. Her floor was a deep blue carpet. Next to the door to her room was her closet. It was a half walk-in closet. It was stuffed full of clothes. on the left wall with her desk was a large window. It was floor to ceiling. She had black sheer curtains pulled back from it. It was a small room, but he liked it.

Imouto basically threw him out of the room when Onee-chan got home. He slipped down the hallway while they were arguing. He could hear them arguing through the walls. Onee-chan sounded mad. The voices got louder as he heard them get closer to the room he was in. He placed the shirt back on the rack and stepped out of her closet. Imouto appeared through the doorway and slammed the door. She held a mean look on her face. She noticed him standing there. She crossed her arms and glared at him. "Seriously? You're still here?" She sneered at him. He nodded and went back to looking through her clothes. She stormed over and grabbed him by his forearms and yanked him out of her clothes. "Don't touch my stuff." She kicked the door shut. He twisted his arms so that her hands slide into his.

"My name is Uta." She yanked her hands out of his grasp, "I don't care." She left him by the closet and walked directly across the room to her bed and flopped on it. He watched her curiously. She covered her face with her arms. "Either kill me or leave. Do both and we'll both be happy." She mumbled. Uta smirked. She had a sense of humor, he liked that. He liked to play with his food.

"I have a question." He walked over to the bed. He had to be close to her. If he didn't like his answer then he would kill her. He knew she could hold someone off, but not him. He was far too strong. She lifted her arms up and looked at him. He assumed it was her signaling him to continue. "Why did I find you in my hunting grounds, taking my food?"

Raiu felt the coldness in his voice. It sent a shiver down her spine. It made her chest tighten. She felt if she answered this wrong, it meant her death. Should she answer truthfully or lie? Well, hell, as she always told Yuki-chan before she did something stupid, 'I'll try anything once'. It was time to seriously put her luck to the test. "I work for an organization that provides meals to ghouls who cannot hunt for themselves." She stared him in the eye, challenging him. Was that the right answer?

"I think it's brave of you." he said quietly. She sat up and looked at him closely. Did he really just say that? He just sat there smiling at her. She scowled at him. Was this guy for real? She thought he looked dumb, just sitting there trying to act innocent. "How is it noble? I kill people, just like you do." She pulled her legs up, crossing them to sit properly. He paused for a second and look at her curiously, as if she didn't have an idea as to what he meant. Did he think she was stupid?

"I think it's brave. I also think you're stupid. You go out into a ghoul's hunting grounds and take their food from them. That is stupid. You give it to those who cannot get it themselves. That is noble. You're both stupid and noble. You're brave." She just blinked at him. She was taken aback by what he said. He thought she was brave? What kind of moronic Ghoul thought she was brave? She was noble? There's a first.

"Are you stupid or stupid?" She raised a brow at him. He laughed at her. He actually laughed at her. Raiu didn't know how to respond to him laughing at her. She just watched him, dumbfounded. She was honestly floored. She didn't get this guy at all. She didn't know if she wanted to. She paused.

"My name is Raiu."

* * *

Raiu had kicked him out. She almost had to physically drag him to the front door until he got the hint. He was absolutely infuriating. If it wasn't his way it was the wrong way. He kept asking annoying questions, prying into who she was. Every day since then, whenever she'd leave the apartment complex, there he was. He would be there as if he magically knew when she'd be there.

On the fourth day of this happening, she happened to be going for a run. She bolted from the doorway and straight past him. She didn't even look back to see his face. She ran through the crowds hoping to lose him if he were following here. Once she got three blocks down, she slowed her pace. She stopped at a crosswalk for the light to change. She bent over to catch her breath. She might have over done it and ran too fast. She just really didn't want to be annoyed by that guy.

As soon as she looked up, there he was. Giving her that stupid eat shit grin from the other side of the street. She swore under her breath as the light changed. She was forced forward by the crowd. She told herself she would vamp as soon as she hit the side walk. He was walking towards her with that stupid grin. When he neared her, he pivoted and walked beside her back to where he was standing before. She told herself she would run. She tensed her body as she neared the sidewalk.

As soon as her foot came in contact with the concrete, an opening in the crowd popped up and she ran. Or she tried to. She felt him grab her arm and yank her back. It was enough force to send her back into the crosswalk sign. It knocked the wind out of her. She gasped for air as she glared darkly at him. He pulled her up, still with that eat shit grin. She tried to pull her arm away, but he had an iron grip.

"Ma'am, are you okay?" She jumped at the sound of someone behind her. It was an older business man. He seemed nice and polite. "What?" She slumped her shoulders in confusion. Her face was scrunched up, trying to figure out what he meant. "Ma'am is he bothering you?" He stepped closer and placed a hand on her shoulder. Uta pulled her away from the man. "She's just menstruating. She's fine." Uta said politely. Raiu was taken aback. Her mouth fell open. The man nodded and walked away. Raiu's eyebrows scrunched up as she watched him go. She tuned back to Uta with the same dumbfounded look. "I don't know what pisses me off more: the fact that you said that or the fact it worked." She muttered. "Walk with me." He said, or rather demanded. She did walk with him, or rather was dragged with him. He talked about everything on the blue moon. Finally she started talking back when they stopped at a park. They were both on a bench for an hour and a half just talking.

Raiu found out that Uta's name was the kanji for song and Uta learned that her's meant thunderstorm. She found out she was two years younger than him. He had lived here his whole life. The people she had found him with that night were his "subordinates" because he was the mediator of the 4th Ward. She explained that she was part Japanese but was mostly American. She explained that's why she looked white. They found that they had much in common. They thought the same about things. They found they both loved music and art. They found they both had a temper; Uta's being passive aggressive and Raiu's being straight out aggressive.

They found that they both made each other laugh. They both enjoyed each other's company. Raiu hated to admit it, but he actually liked the guy. As much as she hated it, she actually wanted to be friends with the guy. He wasn't as annoying as she once thought. He was pretty witty and clever. Anything she shot at him, he could send it right back. She liked his sense of humor and the way he spoke. She invited him back to the apartment. It's not like he hasn't been there before or something. So they walked back, chatting about passing things.

"I got one." Raiu said as she sat, leaned against her bed with her laptop on her lap. Uta hummed in response as he sketched a drawing on Raiu's bed. He was sitting cross-legged with a sketch pad in his lap. They were playing a question game. They had been playing since they arrived. They would ask each other questions about the other's species.

"When you eat a tongue, does it feel like you're making out with someone?" She looked up at Uta. She honestly was curious. He looked up for a brief second and then back down. "I wouldn't know," he mumbled. He regretted saying it as soon as it left his mouth. "What do you mean, you don't know? You're such a player. You probably got girls at every corner wanting you." She teased him with a laugh. She noticed his usual aloof expression and raised an eyebrow. "You're kidding right? I know you have like a girlfriend or something. You're too hot not to." Raiu had let it slip before she realized what she said. She turned her attention back to her laptop. She was looking up information on him, thank god she blocked the view of her laptop. "For a Ghoul, that is." She added after a second.

"Are you hitting on me?" She heard him asked calmly. "God no, I just met you. I'm not like that." She laughed to cover her embarrassment. She can NOT believe she said that. He will not let her live this down. "I know someone like that. I think she likes me, but I don't like her." "Then tell her. It's best not to lead people on. Also, you never answered me." She grinned ear to ear. She liked teasing him as much as he liked teasing her. "Eh, she's kind of annoying but she's my friend." He evaded the question a second time. "So you're not going to answer me? Is that it?" Raiu's grin widened. She felt like she was uncovering juicy gossip on someone. She heard him sigh and then quietly say, "No. I haven't."

"Whaat!? The great Uta hasn't kissed anyone yet?" Raiu's eyes lit up as she looked up from the floor. She had a smirk on, the smirk that meant she was going to tease him mercilessly. Uta just shrugged, focusing on his drawing. "I haven't liked anybody." Raiu leaned against her bed, looking up at him. Her head was lying on the space in front of his lap. "So you do have girls that want you. Such a player." She teased just stared at her. "Awwww, but you like me? That's so cute. Uta are you in love with me? Do you wanna kiss me? That's so cute. You like me." Raiu stuck her tongue out, teasing him. "I never said I liked you."

He closed his sketch book and set it aside. She laughed at his avoidance of the rest of what she said. She reached up and poked his knee and giggled. "Am I one of those pretty girls boys like?" He swatted her hand away. "No. You're not." She faked a loud gasp and feigned hurt. "How could you Uta-chan! I loved you and you treat me like this? Well I never!" She laughed as she turned around to focus her attention back on her research. She clicked off the page so he wouldn't see what she was doing.

He smirked and lay on his stomach so that his head was peeking out from over the bed. "Raiu-chan, I don't like anybody. I mean it." Her head was next to his. She paused. Did he think she was actually being serious? She looked at him. "I know, I was teasing you." Her smile dropped. He was giving her a strange look. His face was blank but his eyes were scanning her face. "Uta?" She raised an eyebrow. He met her with silence. He looked conflicted. "What? Did I say something wrong-" She couldn't finish her sentence.

Uta had a hand placed on the back of her head and his lips on hers. Uta kissed Raiu.


	4. Chapter 4: Pretty Handsome Awkward

Chapter Four.

 _Pretty Handsome Awkward – The Used_

Raiu lay curled into a ball on her bed. She was trying to get some much needed rest. She had to give up the job she had lined up tonight to Yuki because she just couldn't stand up for a long time. She really wanted his job. She was supposed to take out a mob boss in the 4th Ward. She was mad that she couldn't work tonight, but she'd survive. How she would survive, she had no idea.

See, Raiu was sick. Her throat was scratched to hell. She could hardly speak. Her temperature was 104F or 40C. Her nose was running all to hell. Her whole body hurt. She had no idea where she had contracted this illness, but she felt like death. She had her room down cold due to the fever, but her comforter wrapped tightly around her. She had an icepack on her forehead to help her headache that she had as well. She felt like absolute shit. She wasn't planning on doing anything until she got better. How was she supposed to work when she had a coughing fit anytime she tried to talk for a long period of time?

She rolled over onto her stomach and hugged her pillow. She had told Koyuki to stay away because she wasn't sure if it was contagious or not. She had informed "mother" of her health status, the company agreed she should stay home and recover. They would give her eight days of paid leave until she recovered. She didn't need some stupid recovery, she just needed to breathe!

Raiu heard the faint sound of arguing coming from the living room. The voices got louder until they were outside her door. "What? No" She heard Yuki say. Yuki sounded mad, then again, Yuki always sounded mad. Whoever it was sure was ticking her off. Wait a minute, the only person that ticked her off that bad was… "You're not allowed here! Wait!" Raiu's bedroom door opened and Uta calmly stepped inside. Raiu peeked up from the pillow just in time to see him shut the door behind him.

She groaned and made an ugly noise. Uta sat on the edge of her bed. "Raiu-chan, why haven't I seen you in a while?" His face was blank. He stared at the back of her head and top of her back. She made no move to respond in anyway. If he didn't hear her faintly grumbling with his heightened senses, he would have thought she was dead. Her already pale skin lost a lot of color and she seemed skinnier than usual. He laid a hand on her shoulder. Her skin was much too warm.

"Raiu-chan, are you sick?" That made her move. She looked over to him and glared at him. Her throat hurt too bad to talk to him. Plus she was still mad at him for kissing her. "Are you still mad at me for kissing you? I told you it was a joke." She turned her back against him. Yes, she was. It was an invasion of her personal space. The silence felt heavy on him. Did he actually make her mad at him?

He nudged her back. "Get uup" She groaned in agitation at him, but remained still. "Fine." He stood and grabbed the comforter. He ripped it off of her and tossed it on the floor. She sat up on the bed and mean mugged him. "Get dressed, I'm taking you somewhere." She shook her head. She bent over the bed to reach for her comforter. He kicked it away from her. She tried to reach further but ended up on the floor instead. He walked to her closet and pulled out some clothes. He tossed them to her before walking to the door. "I'm taking you somewhere." He repeated. He left the room without another word.

She quickly got dressed with the clothes he had picked. Not a bad choice. He certainly was more fashionable than her. She sauntered out of her room and went straight to the bathroom. She pulled a bottle of cold medicine from her cabinet. She was going to need this if she was going to deal with him and his shit. She took two cups of the awful tasting Nyquil and met him in the living room. She glared at him as he smiled innocently. Then they were off.

* * *

Twenty minutes later they were walking through the 13th ward. He didn't tell her where they were going, just that she needed to follow him. She was a little frustrated because she was already sick and he was forcing her out of her comfy bed to follow him in the streets. Seriously, who does that? Fucking Uta, that's who. Okay, she was more than a little frustrated. She was kinda ticked at him.

Her throat felt like sandpaper; her eyes were watery. She'd sneeze or couch every couple of minutes. Her skin felt like it was on fire. She felt weak and vulnerable. The medicine helped numb some of her pain, but not completely. She was, however, dizzy from the medicine taking its effect. She was out of breath from just walking out of her building. Thank the lord he decided to take the subway. Although, she had to stop and even out her breathing after the steps about killed her.

Uta lead her onto the carriage and promptly weaseled his way to a seat so she could sit down. Raiu was grateful and thanked him. People gave them odd looks, but Raiu was used to it and she assumed Uta was too. It was only natural for people to react badly to the different ones. They probably thought they were a couple. Hell, Raiu thought they looked like a couple, even though they weren't. She also noted that they did come off as weird and different to the normal people.

By different, she meant Uta's blonde locks being the brightest thing on the child. His sunglasses perched on his face, even though the sun was going down; red hoodie with black jeans and black shoes. She donned a black high-waisted, flared skirt with maroon leggings. Her black sheer button down shirt was tucked into said skirt. She also had on a grey tank top underneath and black flats. Yeah, they seemed odd.

Uta stood in front of her, facing her, so no one would get near her. Again, she was grateful. Atleast he was being kind so no one would be near her as she was sick. She didn't want people around her for two reasons. A)She was sick and didn't want to cough on people. B) She didn't like people very much. "Where are we going?" She asked quietly to him, so no one would hear them. Her voice was still hoarse from not using it. "A place." He smiled. She pursed her lips and raised her brows. "Can you be more specific?"

"I'm taking you to a place in the 4th ward." He stated simply. "Why?" "Because I want to." She was starting to get ticked off even more. "Why?" "Because." "Why?" He rolled his eyes and she knew she had won. She sure did love annoying him as much as he loved annoying her. She guessed that's what their friendship started off on. He annoyed the shit out of her until she caved and gave him attention. He mentioned that he found her interesting. What that meant, she had no idea. She did, however, guess it had something to do with the fact that he could shoot something her way and she'd send it right back, just as he did to her.

She looked around the carriage from sheer boredom and her eyes fell on a certain man. He wore a dark suit and a khaki trench coat. He had a briefcase lying next to him and a newspaper in his hand. It was unmistakable that he was a dove. Dove. She learned that term from Uta and thought it was hilarious. Come on, that's funny. Uta, who was a Ghoul, being the demon of the night calling an investigator a "Dove", something that was pure. These doves were not pure. In fact they were just as bad as Ghouls; all they did was hunt and kill.

She looped her fingers in the belt loop of Uta's jeans and pulled him closer. He looked down at her startled. She flicked her eyes to the right and ever so slightly nodded in the same direction. He slightly shifted his weight over and nonchalantly rolled his neck to see what she was talking about. He must have spotted him too because he looked back at her with an eyebrow raised. She shrugged and fiddled with the hem of her skirt.

Their stop came soon after that and they exited the subway. He took her down back ally-ways and creepy streets. He helped her down a narrow stairway that lead to more back streets. She started to get anxious the deeper they got into the 4th ward. He stopped in front of a building that was squished between two taller buildings. It was two story and looked fairly lived in. He opened the door and lead her in. "I'm back." He lazily called. Raiu was shocked to see at least twelve people idling chatting in the room she was in It had two black couches in the center with a glass table in the middle. It had checkerboard floor patter of tile. The walls were a grey metal looking material. It was dimly lit. She guessed Ghouls had better vision than her and didn't need places to be well lit to see. She could see two adjacent rooms at the back wall.

Of course, they all stopped and greeted Uta when he walked in. Once they saw he was with someone, the silent tension fell. She was pretty sure all of them were giving Uta a strange look and her dirty ones. She just followed Uta over to the nearest couch and sat next to him.

"B-Boss! Why is there a food in here?" A brave one called from across the room. Everyone seemed to have stopped to hear the answer. "She's not food. She's not like the others; she helps weak Ghouls in need. She kills her own kind to feed our kind. She's also my friend." Uta calmly said picking at his nails. Whispers started around her. Raiu felt self-conscious in her sickened state. She sniffled and looked around her. The people were staring at her. She caught a few whispers of "so that's her" and "I can't believe actually brought her here".

Uta seemed to noticed and pulled a jar out from under the glass table. On closer inspection, it was a jar of eyeballs. Raiu raised her eyebrows at him. He opened it and fished two out, popping them in his mouth. He offered her one. She just gave him a are-you-serious-look and he popped that on in his mouth as well. The chatter picked right back up.

"So they listen to your every word without a second thought." Raiu mumbled, leaning back against the couch. Uta didn't respond. "They're like mindless puppets and you're the puppeteer." She mused. "Who knew someone as young as you could have so much power?" The music seemed louder than it should have been. It was a song she'd listened to before so she knew the words. She bobbed her head to it, carefully watching those around her.

 _Hey are you okay?_

 _You look pretty low, very handsome, awkward._

 _Do you feel okay?_

 _You look pretty low, very handsome, awkward._

He finally replied, "Says the one that flipped someone twice their size over their back." She snorted. He was right. "You're still short though." She flicked his forehead. "You're shorter than I am." He shoved her lightly. "Careful, I'm ill." She smiled. She was reminded that she was when the force of the push made her head spin. She dropped her smile too quick for Uta to care for. "What is it?" He asked. She turned to him, "Why did you bring me here while I'm sick?" He paused. "Because I wanted to make it up to you for kissing you; I shouldn't have done that." She crossed her arms. That was a lie. She already got him back by making him eat a whole bag of chips. "Or," She started, "Or, you did it because in this state, I'm too weak to fight back and if I were to run and tell anyone who you were, you could kill me." "Smart." He commented. She scowled at him. So she was right.

He paused again before nodding. "Or I just want my way with you." He smirked, breaking the tension. Raiu wasn't sure if it was from the cough medicine making her warm, or maybe it was just warm in the room. She felt the heat creep up her neck and cover her face. She sneered at him. He was being a little shit again. She thought of something and snorted. He repeated her though to him. "Uta, I swear to god. If you don't shut up, I'm going to shave your eyebrows off the rest of the way."

Raiu wasn't certain as to why Uta brought her to his hangout while she was sick. She liked to think that it was because she was vulnerable. If she had rejected the situation, she could have been taken down easily do to her sickness. She had seen too much. She knew of one of what the CCG called a "rat-hole". Rat-holes were where Ghouls met up at. If she had information like this, she wasn't allowed to just waltz out as if it were nothing. He must have really trusted her to take her some place like this.

* * *

Uta took her back home and hour later. He annoyed her with multiple questions. He asked her what she thought of some of the people. He asked what she thought of the place. He asked her multiple stupid questions during their walk to the subway. She was getting irritated by the second. She stayed quiet as too not hurt her throat. "Ray-chan why are you so quiet?" Uta asked as they sat on the bench against a wall. They were waiting on the next train to take them to the 13th ward. It was a five minute more walk, but it was better than walking through unsafe streets. Even though he was a ghoul, they still held the appearance of humans. Uta would rather not have a scene.

"It's because I'm sick, asshole." She crossed her arms in a huff. She was still a little mad that he took her outside while she was sick. Her body was on fire. Her throat felt like she was swallowing razor blades. She felt like any second she would have a coughing fit. Everything felt like a delusion around her. Her muscles begged her to sleep. Her eyes burned from the cold air. It made her eyes water.

He looked like a child. He swung his legs with his hands planted on the seat. He leaned over to look at her. "Are you actually sick or do you just want to avoid me? That hurts Ray-chan. I thought we were best friends." She turned her head and gave him a dirty look. "Yes, I'm sick you, you daft idiot. You took me from my bed. You-Wah!" She jumped back when he placed the back of his hand on her forehead.

"Don't touch me. I'm mad at you." She huffed. "No you're not." He held that same aloof expression. She didn't jump when he placed his hand on the side of her neck. His hand felt cool against her hot skin. Ghouls were naturally warmer than humans. Their body temperatures were higher than humans. Their pulses were faster than humans. Raiu liked to believe Ghouls were the better human. Their regeneration skills caused their bodies to adapt. Their bodies needed to be faster; therefore as an effect, they were hotter. He knew she had a fever if even he felt colder than she did. She was about to say something when there it was, the coughing fit. She quickly covered her mouth with her arm, glaring at him as she hacked her lungs out in front of him. It was almost as if her body was saying 'see? Told you so'.

The train came and they both boarded. They kept to themselves in the corner again. Thank god there were barely any people on it. Raiu was surprised that trains even ran this late. They made it back to the apartment quickly.

She stumbled into her room ad half-assed kicked her shoes off. She tripped walking to her bed and simply fell over onto the bed. Uta stood behind her with his hands in his pockets. He barely heard her groan into the sheets. She was bothersome when she was sick. She felt like she didn't have the energy to climb the rest of the way onto her bed.

Raiu struggled to get on the bed. Her body was weak, much too weak. Her skin tingled. She could feel the warmth coming off of her. Her arms shook as she tried to hold herself up. She swung her leg up and then felt herself being helped onto the bed the rest of the way. She felt herself being put to bed. She was cloaked by her comforter. Her body was much too hot, but at the same time it was much too cold. Her head was swimming and couldn't concentrate on anything but the warmth enveloping her. She accepted the warmth as she felt herself drift to sleep. "Thank you, Uta." She mumbled.

The last thing she felt was a cool hand on the back of her neck.


	5. Chapter 5: Mystery

Chapter Five

 _Mystery_

Uta sat on the couch, watching T.V. in the apartment. He held an icepack to Raiu's head, who was sitting on the floor in front of him. Her fever had spiked overnight. She was much too hot and couldn't get her fever down. She couldn't sleep due to constantly sweating. She was miserable and all Uta could do was assist the best he could.

Yuki had gone out to pick her up some medicine. Raiu needed to get some sleep because she had a job tonight. Yuki had left Uta here with her to monitor her illness and make sure there are no changes. Her fever had caused sores in her mouth. She didn't talk because it hurt to move her mouth much. Uta found it just as a new way to tease her.

"I thought humans ate chicken noodle soup to get better, not watch trash T.V." He teased her. She turned back and gave him a dirty look. "What Ray-chan? What's the matter? Can't you tell me?" She clenched her teeth and narrowed her eyes at him. "What? You can't talk to me? I'm hurt. I thought we were friends." She huffed and turned back around.

Raiu had contracted Thrush due to the antibiotics Yuki got for her. Her mouth had sores on the inside. Her teeth and gums hurt too bad to chew anything. She claimed that everything tasted like shit. All she's had was soup, sugar-free popsicles, and water.

Right now she was eating a popsicle and watching some kind of trashy show about determining whether or not some guy was the father of a kid. Uta wasn't much interested in it. He was focused on the sketch in front of him. He had one hand on the ice pack and the other had a pencil to the sketch book he had placed on his lap.

He found himself sketching many different designs of masks. These weren't just any mask designs either; he was trying to find the perfect one for Raiu. He wanted to make her one, but he couldn't pin a design on her. He wasn't sure what would look nice on her, but also show how she really is. He wanted to show the world the real Raiu, not the false one that she puts out to the world. He secretly wanted to show everyone she was a cold-blooded killer. He just didn't know how. She baffled him and he liked it.

He really liked it.

Raiu suddenly stood from where she was sitting and left the room. Uta guessed she had to use the bathroom. It was her place after all, she didn't need to announce it. As soon as she was past the wall, Uta huffed closed the sketch book.. He just couldn't figure out what would fit her. Anything he thought of didn't suit her perfectly. He wanted to gift her a mask for her upcoming birthday. He stood from the couch and left the apartment.

He wanted to see her reaction. Would she laugh? Would she smile? Or perhaps, would she frown? Would she get angry? She never ceased to amaze him with her emotions and reactions. Granted, she was a female so she was saddened easier by things. She also did that weird thing where females cried over animals. Uta didn't understand that nor did he want to. Unlike other females, she could hide her emotions if she wanted to. She did a good job of that around acquaintances and people she was uncomfortable with. Uta noticed that whenever they took a train, or a walk, or loitered in a public place, she held a stoic emotionless face. She only broke it for him or Yuki.

Whenever they were alone or somewhere where she was comfortable, her emotions displayed greatly on her face and body language. She was very expressive. Her face would twist up in strange ways, but also perfect ways to express exactly how she feels. He liked how her face could exactly express the words "Are you weirded out? Because I'm weirded out." or "Please tell me that's a lie because it is hilarious." He could easily read her when she let him. When she was in a bad mood or mad at him, he couldn't tell yes from no or sarcasm from truth. He'd just leave her be to cool off whenever he'd piss her off. Usually that consisted of her locking herself away in her room. He found out recently what she did while she was locked away.

She painted. She painted mainly abstract. He liked her paintings. His favorite part was how she did it. He asked to watch her do it one day. She allowed him but on the condition that he didn't talk. She said it would break her concentration because she usually kept it quiet or listened to music to fuel her. He agreed. He watched in awe as she painted. She didn't use brushes like normally someone would do. She used her fingers, hands, even arms to paint. She would dip her fingers in the paint and spread it on her as she created art. He would watch her as she curved her arms, splayed her fingers, bend her wrist, and what not to create whatever image she pleased.

After the first time he watched her, he didn't watch the canvas. He started watching just her. He studied her. He watched her face of concentration alter six didn't times as she maneuvered her body to get whatever angle she needed. He would get so caught up in watching her that he'd often forget what he was doing and just watch her. She seemed so enthusiastic about what she was doing and whenever the song was upbeat she'd be so full of energy. Twice she caught him staring at her. She'd laugh and tell him that she'd get embarrassed if he kept on. He would make up some shit about thinking about something and that's why he was.

Uta didn't want to admit it out loud but he had a fondness for Raiu. People could tell. Why else would he bring a human to the hangout and let her live? Of course, if someone asked him, he'd tell them she interested him. That wasn't a lie. She did interest him, but more than interest. She amused him. She was never boring. She kept him on her toes, as he did for her.

He felt himself smile as he stood outside the hangout, looking up at the sky. To think he only found interest in her because of her intoxicating scent. He could have killed her but something told him not to. Then she surprised him as she does every day. He surrounded himself in her scent on almost a daily basis. He couldn't tell if he was addicted to her scent or her.

Either way, he was a Ghoul. She was a Human. He wasn't allowed to have feelings for her even if he did. What if he gets hungry? She's food to him. They could never be. He'd seen it time and time again. Foolish Humans thinking they could mate with a Ghoul. Stupid Ghouls thinking they could withstand the hunger. It was hopeless.

To him, she was the forbidden fruit and he wanted a bite.


	6. Chapter 6: Califormula

Chapter Six

 _Califormula - Blackbear (Tarro Remix)_

"What are we doing, Uta?"

Raiu rested her chin on her intertwined fingers. She had her elbows propped up on the table she was sitting at. It had been months since she was sick. He sadly hadn't gifted her a mask for her birthday. He had found a skull shaped mug in a shop and decided to give her that for her birthday instead. She seemed to love it. For his birthday she had to be funny and got him a mug that said "Your tears" on them. She thought it was hilarious and he found it quite humorous. She had been so busy with work she could barely hang out. Uta took her out the first chance he could. He took her to a small café in the busy shopping district. They were seated at a table in front of a window that out looked the many shops and people wondering about.

It was a nice little shop, but both of them looked like they didn't belong. Uta was dressed in fashionable muted clothes with his sunglasses perched on his face. Raiu was dressed in all black, as per usual. She wore sunglasses so Uta wouldn't feel out of place, but hers were pushed up to her hair.

Raiu was gazing out the window, watching the people walk past. She watched the children walk with their parents. She watched the parents look lovingly at their children. She watched them lightly scold their children about them fighting. She watched the children giggle at their siblings. She watched the many families that she wished she had.

Raiu wished she had a family. She wished she grew up like a normal child. She wished she was one of the reckless teenagers laughing outside the window. She wished she could surround herself with friends and just stop and enjoy life. She wished she could be the girl that was holding hands with her boyfriend and chatting calmly.

Her train of thoughts and gaze were cut as the waitress placed a bowl of fruit in front of her along with her and Uta's coffee. She smiled at the waitress and sipped her coffee. She looked up at Uta and saw him staring out the window. She could see just past his glasses. She could see his eyes just slightly narrowed. His normal aloof face was just a hair different. He seemed to be thinking about something while he watched the world outside.

It oddly made her feel good about it. She cracked a smile as she watched him. As bad as it sounded, he oddly looked human. He was so lost in thought that he didn't notice her watching him. She was okay with that. She liked watching him. He was so interesting. It was almost as if things never fazed him. It was almost as if the world couldn't touch him. With the few moments she could see of him slipping out of the quiet, complex mask he wore, she enjoyed it.

She liked to think of herself special. When sees him around other people, he's so calm and quiet. He speaks friendly to people when he's spoken to. Among people she'd consider to be closer to him, she'd see him remark sarcastically to them or crack a smile. When he was with her, he was more talkative. He smiled more. He was definitely a smartass more. Raiu noticed all of this in the months she's known him.

They quickly got comfortable with each other. If someone saw them, they'd think the two had been friends for years. They were so similar. They both dressed the same style. They both were smartasses. They both had a love for art. They both were fascinated with humans. Uta's more of a morbid enjoyment of how human's acted and what they ate. Raiu's was more of a psychological standpoint.

Raiu had a love for psychology. She often would explain the reason why people do the things they do to Uta. He would have a question and she'd have an answer. Of course she didn't know everything about the subject, but she liked to research it if she didn't know the answer. Uta was her favorite subject, though. She liked watching him and analyzing him. He was expressionless, it was almost as if he had no apathy.

She noticed the steam had disappeared off his fresh, hot coffee. She decided they needed to delve into the items they paid for. "Uta, did you hear me?" He blinked and looked back to her, his face slipping back to the correct aloof expression. He picked up the coffee and sipped on it, leaning forward, towards Raiu. "Do you ever think that we're created in order to die?" He asked.

She was a bit taken aback by the sudden question. She leaned back in her seat, crossing her arms. She pursed her lips and gazed up at the ceiling. She thought for a moment before answering. "Well sometimes I do, honestly. It's a somewhat logical theory. There's no definite reason as to why we are here. I mean the reason as to why you and I are here is because our parents shacked up; as living beings on a hunk of rock in the vacuum of space, There is no reason as to why we're here other than the evolution theory. In a sense, yes, we're created to die. We're made to die in order for the more successful people who make changes and advancements in the world to be born and make their statement in the world. So yeah, we very well could be created to die." She looked back at him to gauge his reaction. He simply nodded and sipped his coffee.

She sipped her coffee and picked a strawberry out of the bowl. "What does that one taste like?" He asked her. She took a bite of it and held it in her hand. "What do you think it tastes like?" She asked him with a smirk. He held out his hand and she gave it to him. He examined the piece of fruit before handing it back to her. "It looks sour and spicy." She laughed and she ate the rest of it. "It's tart and sweet." "What about that one?" He pointed to the chunk of pineapple. "It's tart and it can either be sour or sweet. Fun fact, though, the reason pineapple tingles when people each it, is because the bacteria in it is trying to eat your taste buds." He raised an eyebrow. "Then why would you eat it?" She smiled, "It tastes good." He seemed happy with the answer.

* * *

They finished their food and left the shop. They strolled down the sidewalk. Raiu had pulled her sunglasses back down. The streets were filled with people. The sidewalks were crowded with people trying to get to and fro in a hurry. Raiu and Uta were pressed close together in order to make their way down the sidewalk. They made it to a crosswalk. It was so crowded that people were pushing the two against each other. Uta felt someone grab his arm.

He looked over to see that it was Raiu. He was that she was being pushed back by someone. He took her hand and pulled her forward. He noticed she didn't let go once she was in front, next to him. He decided not to say anything. Normally he was against people touching him but he didn't mind her. Unlike around other people, Uta was okay with being near her. He was more comfortable with being close to her, rather than being across the room like when they first became friends. He was comfortable with her.

He felt as if he was being watched. He looked across the street. He saw two Ghoul men with a human girl. He could smell the stench of Ghoul from here. He could smell all of the humans and Ghouls around him, but these two also smelled like fresh blood. The two Ghouls were obnoxiously flirting with the girl. They had their hands on her. She just giggled ignorantly. One of the men noticed Uta looked at them. The prick had the nerve to motion to Raiu and smirk.

Uta wasn't sure why, but it angered him. How dare he assume that Uta would stoop down to the level of leading a woman on just to have her as a meal. Uta looked away. He would never stoop to such trashy ways. How dare they think of Raiu as a meal. Uta would never think of her as such thing. She wasn't ignorant or boring like other humans. She wasn't like other humans who feared and hated Ghouls. She understood them and she was interested in them. She even went as far as to put her life on the line to feed helpless Ghouls. She cared far too much people who didn't care for her.

He looked back towards the Ghouls. The one who had dared to anger him was distracted by the human girl. The other Ghoul was staring at him now. He licked his lips. His facial expression screamed hunger. No, the Ghoul wasn't looking at him. The Ghoul was looking at Raiu. Uta felt his lip twitch in agitation. How dare another Ghoul want what's his. Uta glared at the Ghoul and intertwined his fingers with Raiu. He felt her look at him. He hoped she wouldn't ask, but he was showing his dominance. There was no way the other Ghoul would even try to take what was his. He watched the Ghoul lose the stupid smirk. It made Uta quite prideful. Damn straight.

The light turned green, causing the swarm of people to push Uta and Raiu forward. Uta kept his eyes on the two Ghouls. Uta pulled Raiu against him. He didn't want her anywhere near them. Uta could hear the stupid things they were saying to the girl to make her laugh. The two Ghouls never took their eyes off of Uta or Raiu. Uta felt someone knock into him. He momentarily stumbled but it sent Raiu forward into exactly what Uta was trying to avoid.

Raiu stumbled right into the Ghoul who was eyeing her. She had let go of his hand to catch herself. The douche had the nerve to smirk. He helped her up. She thanked him awkwardly. The guy was way too close to Raiu for Uta's comfort. He leaned in close to her and whispered something to her. She jerked her head back. He watched her face scrunch up in irritation. He watched her take a step back and reared her arm back.

* * *

 **And just like that, I'm back! Yes, I deleted those chapters. Yes, they will be posted as later chapters. I have written enough chapters to get me by as I pass the current writers block have. I am staying in their youth for a while. I need things to build up. Before someone asks why Uta is being slightly OOC. He in a teenager at this point. He acted a bit more eccentric and open then. He calmed down once he stopped being a mediator. He will calm down in this story as well. Certain things just need to happen as well. Also, the Yuki and Renji stuff will happen in later chapters. It is now 4am as I post this. I hope you guys enjoy! Please review, rate, favorite, and follow you don't have to, but for my sanity, please do.**

 **-0**


	7. Chapter 7: Cold Blood

Chapter Seven

 _Cold Blood - Apocalyptica_

Oh no. he knew that look. She was pissed. She was going to punch him. As much as Uta would have loved to see that, he intervened. He snatched her arm and took ahold of her hand, again intertwining their fingers. He dragged her away from them. He pulled her down the crosswalk and down the sidewalk. He felt her yank at their hands. He let her hand go. "What the hell? Why did you st-" "What did he say to you?" Uta interrupted her.

She looked at him with a are-you-serious-right-now-look. "He said I looked like a good lay." Raiu crossed her arms. She saw the very small twitch of his lip. She sighed, "Uta why did you stop me? That asshole deserved it." "Because the two guys were Ghouls, they were going to kill you." Raiu got the hint and relaxed her body, dropping her arms. She clicked her tongue.

"If they wanted to fuck me that bad, they could have taken me out to dinner first." Uta was the one to give the are-you-serious-right-now-look this time. "Come on, that was funny." She laughed. "No it wasn't." He replied. "Yes it was." "Okay maybe a little." He surrendered.

They began to walk again down the sidewalk. Uta began to zone the noises of the city out. He focused on the smells around him. He caught a whiff of the scent of Ghoul. Was it the two Ghouls again? Were they following them? It wouldn't be hard to spot them. Raiu and himself stuck out amongst the crowd. Him being in dark clothes with strikingly blonde hair, and she was in all black. If the two were following them, then they'd spot them quickly.

They were approaching another crowd. Uta stepped in front of Raiu to guide her through it. Raiu grabbed the back of Uta's jacket. They wormed their way through the people and exited through a back street. Raiu caught up to Uta and fell in sync with him. She looked at him curiously. Normally they would take the subway home, but he took her this way.

The sun was going down and it was not safe in this part of 13. It was on the border of the 4th Ward. A lot of people were killed here or went missing. They were close to her apartment when Uta pulled her into a hug. She was surprised by it, she almost didn't hug him back. He wasn't one to be affectionate towards her. He would tease her about kissing her, but that was it.

"They're following us." He spoke up. She immediately understood why he did it. He wanted for them to mistake them for a couple. "What do you want to do?" She asked him. "Play dumb, I'll handle it." He let her go and walked off. She sighed and stood there. She looked at the sky and pretended to be distracted by it. Not soon after he left, she noticed to figures approaching her. It was the two Ghouls from earlier. She frowned. She shoved her hands in her pockets.

Uta cursed at himself. He didn't want to leave her standing there. He really didn't want to after being so close to her. Her scent enveloped him. It was so intoxicating. It was almost unbearable. She just smelled too damn good. He had to make himself pull away from her. God, if he could just have her that close all day long and just reveal in her aroma; he would die a happy man. Uta shook the thoughts from his head as he peered around the corner at the two imbeciles approaching Raiu. He didn't to be some fool drooling over some human. Ghouls and Humans couldn't have a successful relationship. Then again, he wasn't just some Ghoul. Raiu wasn't just some human either.

"Hey baby, did your boyfriend leave you all alone?" One of them called to her. She snarled at them. She rolled her eyes and turned away from them. She could hear their snickers. She could feel their presences getting closer. She walked towards the lamp post next to the street. She leaned against it. "Come on, don't be like that. You should ditch that loser and come hang with us." She raised a brow. "That loser can kick her ass, I'd be careful." Her words were dripping with sass. They laughed at her. They actually laughed at her. "I don't think some kid is a problem, Come on, don't you want a real man?"

"He's more of a man that you two could ever be. At least he doesn't lead chicks on and then feeds on them. He's a pretty straightforward guy." She looked back over to them. They did not look happy. They were both glaring at her. "You gonna snitch, bitch?" One of them barked at her. She laughed at them. "Like I have time for you douche canoes. Now go away." One of the guys growled at her. Their eyes had changed over. Oh boy. "I'll make a meal out of you bitch." The guy smirked. He walked towards her. He didn't get very far though.

See, it's very hard for the body to work without a brain. Actually it's nearly impossible for the body to be able to function period with a pair of hands squishing it between them. That is precisely what ended that man's life. The second man was so shocked he tried to back away but tripped. Uta retracted his hands and turned to the other man. "M-man, we were just kidding. We'll leave her alone. Promise! P-please!" Raiu rolled her eyes. She whipped the blood from her face and neck. Uta had splattered the blood on her hen he killed him. She knew he did it on purpose to mess with her. "Too bad you didn't take the hint the first time." Raiu called to him. Uta walked over to him nonchalantly.

"W-wait. I know who you are. You're N-n-no F-face." Uta licked the blood from his hands. He watched the man beg for his life. Raiu bent over the dead body. "Good job, you destroyed your favorite part." Uta squatted down next to the still alive man. "Yeah, I know. I didn't want his eyes. I didn't like the way he looked at you." The man was lost for words. "Yeah and that one called me a bitch." Raiu stood and pointed to the man next to Uta. "Oh yeah?" Uta stood, looking at the man with his casual aloof face. "Twice." Raiu smirked. She was somehow enjoying this. "Twice? That's not cool." The man looked almost in tears. He looked like he had seriously screwed up.

Before the man could come up with something to say, Uta stomped his throat. His eyes bulged before rolling in the back of his head. Uta bent down and dislodged his eyes. He popped them in his mouth and chewed on them. Raiu couldn't help herself. She started to laugh. Uta dug into the man's arm. He pulled the muscle tendons right off the bone and into his mouth. "What's so funny?" He asked with a mouthful of meat. "That was a bit of biblical justice don't you think? Look at someone wrong, you take the eyes. Say something wrong, take their throat." Raiu grinned.

Uta rolled his eyes. He got his fill before standing and walking over to Raiu. He cornered her against the lamp post. "You know I could kill you just as easily." Raiu frowned at him. "But you wouldn't." She shot back.

"But I could."

"And? You won't."

"And I think you'd let me."

"Maybe I would."

"You're a sadistic murderer who doesn't even care about her own life."

Raiu just shrugged her shoulders. "Maybe I just trust you too much for my own good." That threw Uta off. He never expected her to trust him. He didn't think she would. Yes, their friends, but friends don't necessarily trust each other, not in Uta's world that is. He backed up to let her free. She rolled her eyes and began walking towards her apartment. He followed her as per usual. They acted as if nothing had happened.

"Wait." Raiu stopped Uta. He turned and looked at her. Was she going to say something about what he did? Or was she going to say something about what he said? She yet again took him for a loop. She grabbed her sleeve. She reached up and wiped his face. She licked her thump and wiped at a smudge on his cheek. She smiled and dropped her arm. "Good. Now you don't look like a killer."

Uta couldn't figure her out. He really liked it.


	8. Chapter 8: Heart Vs Mind

Chapter Eight

 _Heart Vs. Mind - I Prevail_

Two weeks later Uta welcomed himself into Raiu and Yuki's apartment. He found Raiu sitting in the living room. She was wearing black sweatpants and a loose grey tank top. Uta guessed with a smirk that she didn't want to leave the house. He walked over to her and found she was picking at her finger with a knife. She was holding the knife by the blade and concentrating on her index finger. She seemed calm and nonchalant about it. "What are you up to?" He flopped on the couch next to her. "I got a paper cut earlier and now I got some dirt in it. I'm trying to get it out so it doesn't get infected." She muttered, concentrating on her finger. She was lightly dragging the knife through the cut. She was careful not to reopen it. "Did you try disinfectant?"

"Nope." "Here let me see." Uta sat up and took the knife from her. He brought her finger close to examine it. Sure enough, towards the bottom of the cut there was a line of dirt. He softly took the tip of the knife and picked at the dirt. Raiu took her eyes off her finger and watched him.

She noticed a new ring added to his ear. She tilted her head and stared at it. Had he always had that third piercing? She didn't think he did. With her free left hand, she reached over the hand Uta was holding and brushed his hair back to get a better look at it. Uta stopped what he was doing and pulled the knife away. He looked at her out of the corner of his eye. "Did you just get their pierced?" She fingered the third ring in his ear. "Yeah, I got two more on the other side too." He pulled away from her and set the knife on the coffee table in front of them.

"That's so cool. Where do you go?" She pulled her arms back. Uta couldn't help but smirk. She looked so amazed by him. Her eyes were wide and her mouth was slack. She looked too cute. "I know someone in the 4th Ward." She clicked her tongue. "Man, I want piercings." "You do, your ears are pierced twice." He reached up and touched her ear. "You know what I meant."

"I can do it for you. Whatever you want done, I can do it." She raised a brow at him. "I think I'd want a professional to do it." "I said I knew someone didn't I?" She scoffed. "Yeah, let them do it." He smirked. He slid his fingers into her hair. She narrowed her eyes at him questionably. "I said I knew someone, I didn't say who." She caught on to what he was meaning. "Okay but if I'm going to let you near me with a sharp object; there had better be alcohol involved." She smirked at him.

An hour later, Raiu was sitting on the counter in her bathroom. Uta was standing in front of her. He laid the piercing needle, a pair of what looked like scissors but instead of a sharp end it was circular, and a lip/labret bar. He had instructed her to wash her face. She was much too excited. She had thanked Uta at least seven times when he arrived back at her place with the necessary tools. "Where do you want it?" He washed his hands in the sink next to her. "I want the right side of my lip pierced." She was almost shaking with excitement.

He dried his hands off and stood in front of her. He grabbed her chin and examined her lips. He determined where he would place it. He grabbed the metal clamp and positioned it over where he wanted it. He tightened the clamp and let it hang. It opened her mouth and pulled her lip down so he could see the inside. He grabbed the piercing needle and held her chin still. He looked up at her. "This might hurt." She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

Uta was so close to her. He was enjoying himself way too much. He jumped at the idea of being close to her and her possibly bleeding way too fast for his own liking. He was surrounded by her heavenly scent. He had to try hard to concentrate. He pierced the needle through her delicate muscle tissue and out of her soft skin. He grabbed the labret bar and twisted the ball off, while holding the needle. He pushed the needle through, chasing it with the labret.

He set the needle down on the counter and twisted the ball onto the labret. He held her chin and analyzed the hole. The blood began to pool at her skin. His gaze drifted to her lips. They were swollen from the new piercing. She looked so tempting. He could feel his animalistic desire pool inside him like the blood on her new lip piercing. His mind was only on one subject and it was not healthy for him. A voice in the back of his head told him to have her. To take her right there and devour every inch of her both sexually and literally was the only thing on his mind.

He mustered up the strength and pushed the thoughts back. "I'm done." She fluttered her eyes open. She looked up at him and then whipped around to look at herself in the mirror. She grinned from ear to ear. She turned back and grabbed Uta's shoulders. He didn't expect her to do that so he was a bit surprised. "Thank you so much. Can I have another? I didn't even feel it." He puled away from her and grabbed a bit of toilet paper. He grabbed her chin again and dabbed at the blood. "I noticed. Wait and see if you even like having this one before you think about having another." She pouted at him. "You know that doesn't work on me." He replied. She giggled at him. "So about that alcohol."

They both respectively had a bottle and a half of wine. Uta had his blood-wine and Raiu had her blackberry wine. The two empty bottles were lying on the floor by them. Uta was seated in-between the coffee table and the couch. Raiu was seated next to him with her head on his shoulder. They were both very tipsy. Their heads were cloudy from the alcohol in their systems.

He had just finished telling her some stupid story about him almost getting caught sneaking into some place. She was laughing him. He couldn't help but laugh himself. He felt so comfortable right then. "What's the stupidest thing you've done?" he asked her. His words were slightly slurred. "Ever?" She looked up at him. "Yeah, ever." He grinned down at her. "Oh God. I don't know about ever. There's too many things." She smiled broadly. He chuckled at her. "Well then what's one of them?" She bit her lip as she thought about it. "Okay, okay I got one. At one of the foster houses I stayed in there was this new kid. He was super cute, in, like, the baby face kind of way. Well I was super jealous of how much attention he got. I got so fed up one day that I stole his teddy bear and lit it on fire in the kitchen. I almost burnt the whole house down. It was so stupid. I ended up being sent to another house cause of it."

"Seriously?" Uta grinned. "Yeah. He found me a couple years down the road and got his revenge. He put gum all in my hair. They had to cut it all off. That's why I have short hair. It happened last year." "I thought you liked having your hair short." "God no, I hate it. I want it to hurry up and grow out. Don't worry, I beat him up." She winked at him. "So you're a pyromaniac?" He teased her. "I won't say yes, but I will say I know how to burn shit down." She reached for her bottle of wine on the table. She took a drink and put it back.

"I have a question." "Shoot." "What does that taste like?" She pointed at his bottle of wine. "Like wine." He replied bluntly. "Alright smartass, what does it actually taste like?" "You tell me." He handed her the bottle. She took a swig of it. Her face scrunched up. She held the bottle up and glared at it. "It definitely tastes like blood, but different. I don't know what it is, but it's different." He took the bottle from her and took a drink of it himself. "It's fermented blood. To me it tastes like sweet blood with alcohol mixed in." She scooted closer to him. "That's so weird. It's weird that we taste things differently." Uta hummed in agreement.

The front door suddenly opened. Raiu sat up and peered over the couch. Yuki appeared around the corner. She looked at Raiu questionably. "What are you two doing?" Yuki asked. "Having fun." Raiu remarked. She leaned back against Uta. "I'm not cleaning that up." Yuki walked to the opposite side of the room towards the kitchen. "Did you have fun with Renji-kun?" Uta asked. Raiu looked up at Uta, who she found smirking slyly. Raiu sat up and peered over the couch once more.

Yuki's face was bright red. Yuki glared towards Uta. Raiu giggled and returned to her seat. "You can be the one to put her to bed, jerk." Yuki said rather harshly. She marched across the room, down the hallway to her room, and slammed the door. "Koyuki was with Renji?" Raiu asked Uta after she left. "I passed by them on my way back." Raiu nodded.

Soon their drinks were empty. They sat chatting about absolutely everything. Everything was funny to them. They could not stop laughing. Anytime they'd calm down, one of them would start it back up again. Finally, Raiu decided that she was tired. She stood and stretched. As soon as her arms dropped, she realized just how intoxicated she was. "Woah." Her eyes got big. Uta stood up next to her, stretching as well. "Do you need help to your room?" He chuckled at her. She nodded, trying not to laugh again.

They stumbled their way down the hallway, crashing into the wall multiple times. Each time, giggling their heads off. Raiu fumbled with the doorknob before opening the door. She tripped on the change of flooring from wood to carpet. Uta tried to catch her, but she only brought him down with her. They thought it was hilarious. They calmed down after a bit. Raiu half stumbled/half crawled to her bed. She pulled herself on to it. Uta sat next to her bed, leaning against it.

Raiu reached over and pulled at Uta's hair. He turned around to look at her. "Come lay with me." Uta somehow managed to get off the floor and lay next to her on her bed. She pulled the comforter over them. It was much too warm for Uta to protest. He let himself relax in the warm and her aroma. She watched him for a minute before speaking up. "I like being with you, Uta." She smiled. "I like being with you too." He propped himself up on his elbow. In his drunken stupor, he didn't realize she was watching him, but he tucked a piece of wild hair behind her ear and cupped her chin in his hand. His thumb rolled over the piercing just under her lip.

"Do you know why I approached you that day?" Raiu scrunched her face. "No, why did you. It was very sudden." "It's because of how you smell. Every person has a scent. Ghouls have a distinct smell and so do Humans. Humans obviously smell better than Ghouls do. You smell different. You smell so good. It's quite addictive honestly." He couldn't believe he had just said that. He quickly gauged her expression to figure out her reaction. She looked at him for a second before asking, "What do I smell like?"

The words just spilled out of his mouth before he could stop himself. "You smell like freshly picked flowers after a rainy day, and it smells so sweet, almost like candy. It's intoxicating." She grinned. "Is that why you like being around me, because I smell like a daffodil's asshole?" She giggled. He felt his lips turn up into a smile at her. "No, I like you for you. It's a plus though. It's how I met you." Raiu giggled, "You sure do talk sentimental when you're drunk. Maybe I should get you drunk whenever I want to open up about stuff." Uta groaned and flopped down on the bed, this only made Raiu transition from giggles to full on laughter. Raiu calmed down and reach over to Uta. She slid the headband off of his head. She tossed it off the bed. He looked up at her with questioning look. She mussed his hair and smiled.

"I don't know why you wear that. You look nice with your hair down. You only take it down when you fed or when you're feeling animalistic. I think you look good. Hell, I'd date you." She yawned and rolled over onto her stomach. "You'd date me?" Uta teased her, following her and laying on his stomach. "Oh yeah, I'd date the hell out of you." She played along. "I'd date the hell out of you if you were a Ghoul." He teased. Raiu feigned being hurt. She scoffed, "That's racist. Am I not woman enough for you?" "What part of you is woman, again?" Raiu reached over and slapped the back of his head. He chuckled at her antics. She fluttered her eyes shut.

Uta wasn't exactly tired. He also couldn't exactly tell her no either. Uta kicked himself over and over in his head. He needed to stop getting so close to her. Every time he got close, he wanted more. When he was away from her, he could think straight. He could think like a _Ghoul_. When he was around her, he forgot who he was. He forgot _what_ he was. It was like there was no outside world. There were no CCG after his kind. There was no Ward that he ruled over.

It was almost like she didn't see him as some monster. It was almost as if she saw him as an equal. She treated him like he was a Saint. He was far from a Saint. Then again, so was she. They were both fucked up in their own ways. She was a cold blooded killer. She murdered for business like it didn't matter. She once told him that she gave herself a reason to kill.

* * *

 _"_ _U-chan, what do you want to do when you grow up?" Raiu set her coffee down on the floor next to. Uta had found her sitting in the hallway with her laptop on her lap. He didn't ask what she was doing, but it seemed important. She was typing away on it and seemed very concentrated on it. He sat on the opposite side of the hallway. He leaned against the wall. He had brought his sketch book with him. He flipped it open and was working on a few designs until she spoke up._

 _He didn't really think about it much. He assumed he would always be the leader of the 4_ _th_ _Ward. He never pictured himself doing anything else. He gave it a bit more thought before replying. "I didn't think about it."_

 _She nodded absentmindedly. Her eyes were glued to the screen in front of her. "What do you want to do?" he shot her question right back at her. She stopped typing and looked up at him. "I'm not sure. I'm not good at much. I like Art. I like Psychology. I could go to school for one of those. I could maybe make money that way. I haven't been able to go to school the right way because of my job. I never know when they're going to need me next so I can't study or do homework. I had to rush through high school with online classes while Koyuki and I moved here and settled in." She looked down sadly._

 _Uta never got to have an education because of him being a Ghoul. He was too sadistic and would probably torture classmates. Plus his ass of a father wouldn't let him. He never got a proper education. His mother taught him everything he needed to know. He felt sort of bad for her. She had a good chance to have a proper education because she was human. She got it taken away from her in order to help his kind. Why would she throw it all away for a job?_

 _"_ _Why do you work for them anyway?" Uta asked quietly. Raiu sighed. She closed the laptop and rubbed her face. She suddenly looked very tired. She looked conflicted. "It's kind of complicated. I've seen the scum of the world. I've seen how people turn into monsters behind closed doors. I've been treated like shit. Maybe that's why I like psychology. I don't know, but I've seen how people can be. People like that don't deserve to live. Even if it's just a dent, I'm helping to clean the shit from the streets. We only target scum, people who have committed crime against other people. I tell myself they don't deserve to live because of what they do to others. I've been on the victim side; I would have wanted the shit to die too."_

 _"_ _Does it matter if it were a Ghoul or Human?" He asked her, genuinely curious. Her face twisted up in thought._

 _"_ _No."_


	9. Chapter 9: Salty Seas

**Trigger Warning: Sexual Assault, Abuse, Death**

* * *

Chapter Nine

 _Salty Seas - Devics_

 _"_ _No," She began, "It wouldn't matter to me. If they wronged someone in a terrible way then they deserved to die. I feel like I'm taking the evil out of the world." Uta could understand where she was coming from. He wondered what she classified as evil. "Am I evil?" Raiu shook her head. "See the thing about that is, technically Humans and Ghouls are the only evil things on the planet."_

 _Uta tilted his head in confusion. She smiled a small smile at him. "We're the only creatures with morals, therefore know right from wrong, because we do wrong and evil, we are evil. Animals are not evil, they cannot be evil. Are you evil? In a sense, yes you are. You kill innocent, therefore you're evil. You're not evil though. You were born with the need to kill in order to survive. You had to feed on the lives of the innocent. If you didn't kill, you didn't live. Some people stem into an enjoyment of killing because it becomes easy to them. That's why there are binge eaters. That's why there are people like you, sadistic fucks who do it for fun. It's not your fault though. You were made that way. Plus, you fed when you kill so it's not a waste to you. You don't do it for nothing." She ended it with a smile. She stood and stretched her legs. She grabbed her mug of coffee and walked towards the kitchen. Uta followed her and asked another question._

 _"_ _Do you think you're evil?" The question floored her. She stopped walking and looked back at him. She looked sad and it made Uta wish he hadn't asked it. "Yes, I'm evil." She moved again towards the kitchen. She dumped the coffee down the drain and placed the mug in the sink. Uta hopped on the counter and kicked his feet. "I was not born with the need to kill. I didn't need to do it. I only fought people and it was usually the boys for picking on me. I killed someone for the first time when I was young. It was out of anger, but they deserved it. I got relocated after that. It didn't affect me the way it should have. I still remember it. I remember it all. I met Koyuki soon after I was relocated. We stayed in the same foster house for a few months. Soon after that, I made a scene and had to leave again."_

 _"_ _I stayed in one more home after that before some people came to get me. They adopted me and took me home. They didn't treat me like I was a kid. They called me "Miss" all the time. I find out that I was selected by the company. I was taught how to fight. I was taught how to kill. I was taught Japanese language and culture. I sped through high school classes like it was nothing. After passing a test, I was sent here. That was a year ago." Raiu shrugged and leaned against the counter next to him. "You know what the saddest part is? I like killing them. I feel like I'm doing some sort of justice. I'm taking the shit off the streets and I'm keeping people alive on both sides. It's a twisted sort of justice." She nudged his leg. He looked up at her, questioning her. "Any more questions?" He nodded. "When you said you've seen the monster in people… What happened to you?"_

 _She dropped her gaze from his. She twiddled her fingers. She paused and looked back at him. "Do you really want to know?" He nodded slowly. She smiled sadly and scratched the back of her head. "I've told you everything else; I guess I can tell you this. You haven't judged me yet, so I know you won't see me any differently." Uta agreed. He didn't judge her for her words. It was what she believed. He didn't exactly see it the same way though. He didn't see her as evil. She was doing a noble thing by risking her life to provide for his kind. He respected that. He held high respect of her because of her words. She was smart. She was down to earth. She saw the world how it really was, even though she saw him as less of a monster and more of an equal. Uta could only think of himself as a monster. He didn't exactly agree with her views of him not being a monster, because he was. He has been and always will be. It's not something he's proud of, but he sure does have fun with it._

 _Raiu closed her eyes. She took a deep breath and proceeded to explain to him what she meant. It made his blood boil. He was hot with anger. How dare someone do that to her. She didn't deserve any of it. She didn't deserve anything but the best. He could think of several people who deserved that more than her. She was too precious for a world like that. It made him so angry that his mind was clouded with red and anger. He didn't realize he had clenched his fists too hard on her counter top. He had cracked it off before he realized he was clenching his fists around it. Of course, he schooled his expression the whole time. He didn't want her to see him angry. He had seen that too much from other people. Right then and there he vowed he would never let her see those kinds of things ever again._

 _"_ _I was abused physically, verbally, and sexually by my mother and step-father. I was abused mainly by my mother growing up. She didn't want me or my brother. We were bastard children by a man who left her. Fun fact, one of the reasons I agreed to come to Japan is because he's Japanese and I wanna find him. Anyway, the step-father came into the picture when I was seven. He molested and raped me on multiple occasions until I was ten. My mother didn't care at all. She blamed me for everything. Why did it stop when I was ten? I snuck into their room one night and stabbed him in the throat. He was a heavy sleeper. He died in his sleep. My mother woke up the next morning in frenzy. She freaked out and called the police. I was waiting for her in my room. I had a can of gasoline from the shed outside and a pack of matches. I threw the gas on her as soon as she slammed my door open. I lit her up without a second thought. I waited for the cops outside in the snow. When they came for me I didn't lie. I told them the truth. Mommy was cold so I warmed her up. Daddy said his throat hurt, so I helped him too."_

 _Uta tried his best to calm his voice. He slowed his breathing in order to slow his heart rate. He closed his eyes. He couldn't look at her when he asked her his last question for the evening. "Did you tell anyone what was going on?"_

 _"_ _Yes. I told teachers on multiple occasions. They thought I was trying to get attention. I told counselors. I even called Child Protective Services on the school's office phone one time. No body helped me. No body saved me. So I saved myself. That's why I'm so fucked up." She laughed sourly. She had opened her eyes just in time to see her front door slam shut._

 _Uta was already down the hall and slammed open the door to the stairwell. He was running down the steps much too fast. He stopped when he heard the muffled music coming from one of the rooms of the floor he was on. He found his way into it. He couldn't see anything but red. He didn't know why he was so angry, but he was so pissed. He just wanted to kill. He wanted to watch the life leave someone's eyes. He did just that. He took down an entire party of 30+ in the matter of minutes. He slaughtered them in aggression. He left no trace of human left. He didn't even feed on any of them. Their screams weren't heard by the neighbors due to the music. He didn't know how but he got out of there. He fed two months' worth that night. He binged all night long to calm his temper. None of it seemed to fill the hole of anger towards Raiu's parents. He was just so angry that someone would do that to her. She was too good for that._

 _He vowed to kill anyone who attempted any of those things on her ever again._

 _He vowed not to let anyone touch her again._

Raiu's breathing evened out. She looked very peaceful. He pushed the hair that had fallen in her face behind her ear. He felt his eyes grow heavy and the alcohol hibernation take over. Why was she so nice to him? Why is she so accepting of him? Was it her crackpot theory that he killed because it was easy? He loved it. It was fun to him. He didn't understand why she was so calm about this. It unnerved him that someone mistreated her for so long and nobody cared. She was too nice for this world. She was too nice for him.

He wouldn't just leave her. He couldn't just leave her. He hated himself for it, but he cared for her. He didn't believe that Ghouls and humans could have relationships. He knew they didn't work out. He would never make a move in that direction with her. He didn't want it to end badly. He didn't want to lose her. She was important to him. She didn't look at him as some all-powerful Ward mediator. She looked at him as a friend. He would indulge as much as he could. He would keep her close as long as he could.

He would live in this pretend world that everything was okay as long as he could with her.


	10. Chapter 10: Midnight City

Chapter Ten

 _Midnight City - M83_

Raiu slipped the sunglasses on her face as her and Uta exited the building. He was taking her back to the hangout place. The streets were awfully busy for it being this close to sundown. She had to hold onto the back of Uta's jacket so she wouldn't lose him in the sea of people. She had been so busy with work that she barely saw him for a while. He popped up at the apartment, like he usually did whenever he wanted to hang out, and told her he wanted to take her back to the hideout.

It had been a week since her and Uta drank. She must have been far drunker than him because she barely remembered what happened. She woke up tangled in her comforter with Uta asleep next to her. She didn't question it because it was a better option than him leaving intoxicated. She had been fine and didn't have a hangover. He, on the other hand, had been a little cranky when he woke up. She had made sure he was okay before he left.

He led her to the subway. He passed the people with ease. She let go of him when they made their way towards the people waiting to get on the train. He looked back to make sure she was still with him. They stood quietly with the people until the train came. They hopped on the third carriage and made their way to the back. They stood in the corner by the exit. Raiu had her back against the wall with Uta facing her. He reached up and poked the lip ring. She crunched her eyebrows in confusion. "Is it sore?" He asked. "No, I don't even know it's there half the time."

She had gotten into a bad habit of chewing on it absentmindedly. As soon as she spoke, she began to chew on the metal rod. She looked around the carriage. Not many people were with them. It was mainly business men on their way home after work. There were a few teenagers in there. There was a pregnant lady standing near Raiu and it blocked her view of the rest of the people. She looked back at Uta. He was looking past her, at the wall. He seemed to be thinking about something. She smiled. He sure did get lost in thought a lot more recently. In fact, he did it more ever since the night they got drunk. He won't tell her what happened. No matter how many times she asked, he would just tease her about it. He teased her about saying she did all this things she knew she wouldn't do. She was just curious as to what happened. She didn't know why he won't tell her. It's not like something bad happened, but it's like he's using it against her.

Just then the pregnant lady moved to sit down in a seat. Something caught Raiu's eye. She looked over and saw it. Across the car, diagonal from her was a man dressed in a suit. He seemed normal looking. He had brown, clean cut hair. His dark brown eyes glared at the wall in front of him. On his lap was a large white briefcase. Oh shit. It was a box carrier. There was a Dove on the car with her and Uta.

She kept her eyes on him and placed a hand on Uta's chest. She felt him look at her. "Don't look, but there's a Dove with us." She whispered quietly. "Where?" Uta leaned closer to her. "He's on the far left at the end. I don't think he's noticed you yet. He's not even looking over here." She whispered and turned her attention back to Uta. He was very close to her. She could feel his breath on her neck. He had his face on the other side of her head, to where the man couldn't see it. He put his hand on the wall behind her. "Play along. I just said something funny." She hadn't heard Uta speak so seriously before. This was new to her. She giggled obnoxiously and lightly pushed his shoulder. She forced herself to smile as if she was the happiest girl ever. "He's still not looking." She whispered. "Good." She felt his other hand touch her waist. It made her jump.

They stayed like that until they arrived at their stop. He took her hand and took her to the doors that were about to open. She was behind him when she saw the Dove stand up and make his way over to the doors on his side of the cab. She saw him turn his head to look over at their doors. She leaned against Uta's back. When she made eye contact with the man, she winked at him and smirked. She saw his face grow red and look away. Typical human, they were embarrassed by simple things. When the doors open, Uta lead her out of the train. They walked up the stairs and into the city streets.

She felt eyes burning into the back of her head. She looked back to see the Dove staring at her. His eyes were narrow. The blush that was once on his face was gone. His eyebrows were scrunched as if he was trying to figure out if he knew her or not. This was bad. This was very bad. They didn't need that guy identifying Uta out in the open. She didn't need him finding her with a Ghoul.

She stopped walking. Uta looked back at her to see what was wrong. She reached up and placed her hand on the back of his neck. She pulled his face close to hers. She smirked devilishly and whispered, "He's watching us." Uta understood and stepped closer to her. "Kiss me." She simply stated. She knew he wouldn't get it. She sighed with a smile and explained. "Public displays of affection avert the eyes. Kiss me."

He hesitated before leaning in. She swallowed the lump in her throat and met his lips with hers. He kissed her softly. Her eyes closed and her world went silent. In an instant, she forgot what she was supposed to be doing. She was too focused on how his lips caressed hers. She focused on syncing her lips with his. Half of her brain was screaming for her to pay attention to the actual matter at hand. The other half was a haze of hunger and passion. She didn't realize she stopped breathing until he pulled away from her. She fluttered her eyes open.

Everything came back to her suddenly. Uta raised his head and looked behind her. She guessed the guy wasn't there anymore because he grabbed her hand and began walking again. Uta didn't say anything to her the rest of the way. Good. She didn't want to talk about that either. She felt heat creep up her face when she realized this was the second time they had kissed.

* * *

Raiu found herself walking through the door of the hangout. She had been here previously. He had brought here when she was sick that one time. She vaguely remembers the people. She vaguely remembers even getting home that night. Uta really did like to do shit that she wouldn't remember. He also liked to annoy the snot out of her.

She guessed that's sort of how they became friends. He followed her around and annoyed the shit out of her until she gave him attention. When she finally did after a couple days, she found that they got along marvelously. They would talk for hours about things or sit in silence for hours, each doing their own thing, enjoying the company. She assumed he drug her here in her sickness to test her friendship and her word. Would she run and tell? He could have easily killed her. She had been weak from her sickness. She couldn't even have run very far. Her legs were screaming at her when he took her out that day anyway.

The place still looked the same. The floor was checkerboard tile. The walls were a muted dark grey. It was very cold looking. There were two couches around a glass table in the center of the room. In the back left corner was an adjacent room with a lower ceiling. She could see a wooden desk with papers and craft materials on them. On the other side of that same back wall with the adjacent room was another adjacent room that she knew had stairs that lead to the second floor. She didn't know what was on the second floor. Uta flopped on the couch with his arm around the back. Raiu followed him and sat next to him.

"So what are we doing today?" She picked at her nails. "I'm going to tattoo you." She looked at her with a smile. "Woah, woah, woah hold up. I already let you near me with a sharp needle. Now you wanna come near me with a sharp needle gun? I don't think so." She scoffed and crossed her arms. He simply stared at her with that same eat shit grin. "Besides, what if you mess up? I can't exactly regrow body parts here." She grumbled. "I'm not going to mess up. If you don't believe me, I've already tattooed myself."

He said as he pulled off his hoodie. He was wearing a cut off grey shirt. He looked good in it. He looked _real_ good in it. He turned towards her to show her his left arm. Her eyes widened. On his bicep was a star shaped flower. It looked like he inverted the design. The star was black with his skin tone showing through to make the designs in the flower. Her mouth fell open. She grabbed his arm and pulled it closer. She brushed the flower with her thumb, almost as if she didn't believe it was real, like it would rub off and it was a joke.

"Uta you did this?" She looked up at him with a grin. "This is brilliant. It looks so professional." She released his arm. His smile grew at her reaction. "How many times did it take to get it that good?" She crossed her arms. Her grin turned Cheshire. "Three times. I have a handle on it now. I won't mess up. You can even tattoo me if you want." He stood and walked into the room on the left. He disappeared into it and reappeared with a box.

He set the box down on the table. He opened it to reveal and tattoo gun, a small plastic bottle of black ink, vinyl gloves, and a jar of some kind of pale paste. He pulled a roll of paper towels out from under the glass coffee table. Her smile dropped. "You weren't going to let me say no, where you?" Her question was answered by him pulling the vinyl gloves on and setting everything up. He stood from the couch. "Take your top off." He said with a grin. "I bet you've been waiting to say that line, you smug bitch." He snorted, "A little." Raiu laughed and pulled her hoodie over her head.

She was only wearing a black spaghetti strap tank top under her grey hoodie. She stretched her back, popping it. "Where are you going to permanently keep from getting a respectful career?" She teased him. "Lay on your stomach." He motioned to the rest of the couch. "Can I trust you behind me with a sharp object?" He just stared at her. She rolled her eyes and lay down on her stomach. She had her right arm hanging off the side of the couch. Her left was tucked against her chest. She felt him move her tank top up to reveal her lower back.

She heard the gun start. "Woah, you're gonna freehand it?" She asked, startled. She looked back at him to find him sitting on the floor in front of the couch with gun in hand. He just looked at her with that same aloof expression. "It would make me feel a hell of a lot better if you traced it out first." He sighed and stood, venturing back over to the left adjacent room. He came back with a black marker. He sat back down and she soon felt the light strokes of the cold marker tip on her skin.


	11. Chapter 11: Volatile Times

**Trigger Warning: Assault, Sexual Assault Themes**

* * *

Chapter Eleven

 _Volatile Times - IAMX_

The buzzing of the tattoo-gun had been going for hours now. Raiu was still lying on her stomach on Uta's couch. She could feel the scratching of the needle on her skin. She didn't even get to see what it was before he started. Every now and then she would peer back at him. He seemed so focused on his work. She could feel his hand on the small of her back. He moved his hand to wipe off excess ink and from what she could smell, blood. She wondered if he was okay with being so close to her while she was bleeding.

Suddenly the sound of the gun stopped. "Okay, you're done." Raiu pushed herself up to stretch her back. She tried to look back, but she could only get a glimpse of the black ink on her hip. "I want to see it." She whined. He stood and popped his back. She sat up on the couch. She felt the cold air breeze across her stomach. She momentarily forgot her tank top was hitched up. She didn't want to pull it down in fear she'd mess up the tattoo. He motioned for her to follow him. She stood from the couch and followed him to the back left room.

He walked up the staircase and opened the door at the top. This was the first time she had been up here. She felt a bit nosey and looked around the space. It was an empty space with dark wood hardwood flooring. On the back wall looked like a kitchen set up that was never used. The wall came in to create a room in front of them. She assumed that was the bathroom. On the right was a door to what she assumed to the bedroom since it was larger. He led her to the door in front of them. He flicked on the light next to the door. The sink was on the wall to the left. The mirror took up the rest of the wall with six inches between the ceiling and the edge of the mirror. It had nice vanity lights on either side of it. The counter space was a shade darker grey than the color of the walls. The cabinets under the sink matched the color of the walls. On the right wall was a tub/shower combo with maroon shower curtains closed around it. The toilet was next to door on the right. It was spacious.

He led her in front of the mirror. She stood next to him with her back turned to the mirror. She could see the top of it but not all of it. She hopped on the counter and sat on it to get a better view. She could see all of it. It was a black bird. It looked like a phoenix with its wings spread towards her head. Its head turned to the side. It's body leading down towards her waist. It's long tail swirled to the left, towards her spine and then swiveled right and around to her hip. It was detailed with intricate designs inside. They looked Aztec and difficult. It was very much small detailed. Only the head was colored in completely other than the small eye that was her skin. The wings were triangular swirls that branched to the mandala in the center of its body. The tail was spiral after spiral.

Raiu guessed she was so entranced by see it, she didn't realize she was leaning too much off of the counter. She felt herself begin to slip when Uta grabbed her arms to steady her. She jerked her head up to look at him startled. He had the same uncaring expression. She grinned big at him. "I love it." He smiled at her and helped her off the counter. "Am I able to cover this with clothes or do I need to wait?" "You should probably wait a while." He stated. He led her back down stairs and told her to sit on the couch. She obliged as he sat next to her and applied the pale looking ointment to it. "This is so it stays moist and doesn't peel." He informed her as he placed a layer of paper towel to it and pulled her tank top over it. She looked back at him smiling. "Thank you. I really do love it." "I'm glad." He replied.

* * *

He cleaned up the table and put the items back into the box. He returned the box to his work room. When he exited the room, he noticed she was no longer sitting on the couch. He looked around the room and she wasn't there. Her hoodie was still lying on the table and he could smell her so she hadn't left. He ventured upstairs as he could smell her stronger this way. So she was playing the hiding game, was she? He would play along.

He silently walked across the floor and hopped on the counter. He would sit her and wait for her to pop out of wherever she was. She would eventually get bored and come find him. She often told him it was unfair because he could smell her everywhere and so she could never get away with anything. So this time, he wouldn't look for her. She would have to look for him.

He kicked himself mentally. It was stupid for him to have gotten so close to her. It was killing him to be that close to her. Her skin was so soft and warm. He wanted to keep his hands on her because of it. He couldn't stop touching her. He liked the feel of her skin. He liked the smell of her. He was getting too attached to her. His thoughts were going to dark places while he was tattooing her. He had to try hard to concentrate on his work. He was in heaven and had to force himself to be grounded. He had to try too hard to control himself.

Oh God. When she sat up and he could see her bare stomach, he thought he was going to lose it. He took her upstairs and to the bathroom. While she was gawking at his piece of art, he was watching her. She seemed so happy that he made that for her. It made his chest flutter seeing her so happy. She was so close to him. Too much skin was exposed for his mental state to be sane. When she started to slip off the counter his first reaction was to catch her. He cursed himself for doing it. His hands were on her skin again. He had a burning desire kindling in his head.

He knew he had an attraction to her. He liked her, a lot. Whenever he was close to her, he had these desires. He wasn't stupid. He knew what they were. He had never been this close to a female before, let alone a human. To him, she was fragile. She was delicate. She was like glass. He didn't want to break her. On the other hand, she was like a drug. He couldn't get enough. He couldn't keep himself away long enough to fix his addiction. Maybe he didn't want it fixed.

He also didn't want to lose her. It was a terrible wish. He knew humans died so easily, but he didn't want her to. That was is biggest fear of having her around. He was dangerous. He could kill her. He could get her killed. He could cross the wrong person and they use her to get him. She was a lose end that could end badly. He solely believed that humans and ghouls could not live together happily. Ghouls and humans could not have a happy relationship. He didn't want to think of an end. He wanted to think of the now.

He would play the cat and mouse game as long as he could.

* * *

Uta was standing with Raiu, waiting on the train. They were standing quietly with the large crowd around them. It was Friday so it made sense to have this many people trying to get places. They tried to avoid the crowds by taking the train, but sadly both options dealt with a lot of people. Raiu just wanted to get on the stupid train and go home. Her being surrounded by all the people made her feel claustrophobic. She needed space and she wasn't getting it.

The train came and as soon as the doors open, the flood of people emptied the train. Raiu was pushed back by people trying to get around her. She tried to fight the crowd, but due to her size, she lost. She was pushed back to the back of the crowd. She tried to fight back to the front. The people were loading the train. She panicked and tried to maneuver the sea of people. She was pushing people out of her way when the doors closed. She got to the front too late. She watched the back of Uta leave with the rest of the people. Shit.

Raiu ran her fingers through her hair. Shit. Now she has to walk back by herself. The sun had already set and she didn't like the idea of traversing the 4th ward by herself. She shoved people out of her way and made her way out of the station. She threw her hood up and started her walk towards the 13th ward. She felt so insecure as she passed the sketchy people and places.

She felt eyes burning into her. She looked back and saw no one. She tried to brush it off, but the feeling stuck to her. She told herself it was because she was being paranoid. She was just a bit scared of being by herself in these parts. It was one thing when she was working, then she was hiding behind a mask. This time she felt exposed. She felt like people could see her. She didn't want to be noticed at all. She could still feel as if she was being watched. She didn't want to look back with the fear of seeing someone.

She was nearing the edge of the 4th ward. She was happy to just get out of the 4th and somewhat safely into the 13th. She sped up her already quick pace. She was so close to freedom, but not enough. She would have been home by now if she had made it onto the train. She felt her paranoia grow by the second. If she rounded the corner she would be in the 13th, but she didn't.

Arms wrapped around her and yanked her back suddenly. She couldn't move her arms due to them being trapped by her attacker. They dragged her backwards into an ally. They had a hand on her mouth so she couldn't scream. Suddenly she was thrown from backwards. Her back and head impacted a dumpster. The air was pushed from her lungs. Her vision clouded with black. Her head screamed in pain. Her brain screamed for her to run but her body wouldn't listen.

Whoever they may be are in for such an ass whooping. She didn't have a chance to move before they grabbed her legs and yanked her forward. Her head slammed against the concrete. She moaned in pain and tried to blink away the clouded vision. She focused to the figure looming over her. The figure dropped down onto her legs. "What's a pretty thing like you doing in a shitty place like this?" His voice sounded disgusting. Her brain screamed at her to take action, so she did. She threw him a punch, but he caught it. She screamed for help.

He gripped her wrist harshly, shutting her up. "Don't fight it honey, just let it happen." With that she screamed as loud as she could. It was cut short by him grabbing her throat and squeezing it. She clawed at his hand with her free hand. He dropped her hand and tugged at her tights. She pushed his face away, slapping him, hoping it would work. She felt the air graze the top of her thigh. Then she began to thrash. She kicked and slapped and thrashed about as much as she could. She felt her head getting light from the lack of oxygen her body needed in order to complete the fast moving.

Tears stung her eyes as she desperately tried to make it all stop. Not again. She didn't want this happening again. She mustered up her strength and bucked her hips, throwing the man off balance. She kneed him in the thigh, causing him to fall off of her. She scrambled up but he grabbed her hoodie and threw her back on the ground. She screamed in pain as she felt the blood rush to her head and out the back. Her head was swimming with pain and fear. "Now look what you did? I told you not to fight it." He stomped her in the stomach. She felt the bile rise to her throat as she coughed up mucus. She felt the blood pool in her mouth. She coughed it out when he repeated the action. Her body felt so weak and defeated. She felt defeated.

"Eye for an eye honey." She heard it before she felt it. The sickening sound of her bone snapping rang in her ears. Her screams rang in the ally. The pain shot up her body as she screamed and cried, desperately hoping someone would save her. Her body shook with pain. She had never felt so weak and helpless in a long time. Was this it? Was this all she was? Was she only a punching bag and a fuck to people? She closed her eyes and wished it all away. That's all she could do.

* * *

 **And just like that, I'm back! Yes, I deleted those chapters. Yes, they will be posted as later chapters. I have written enough chapters to get me by as I pass the current writers block have. I hope you guys are happy with all the chapters I have uploaded to replace them. It took me a couple of days to write it all out.**

 **I am staying in their youth for a while. I need things to build up. Before someone asks why Uta is being slightly OOC. He in a teenager at this point. He acted a bit more eccentric and open then. He calmed down once he stopped being a mediator. He will calm down in this story as well. Certain things just need to happen as well. Also, the Yuki and Renji stuff will happen in later chapters. It is now 4am as I post this. I hope you guys enjoy! Please review, rate, favorite, and follow you don't have to, but for my sanity, please do.**

 **-0**


	12. Chapter 12: Waking the Demon

**Trigger Warning: Slight Assault, Gore Scene**

* * *

Chapter Twelve

 _Waking the Demon - Bullet for My Valentine_

Uta noticed right away that Raiu wasn't on the train. As soon as the door shut, he couldn't smell her anymore. He couldn't see her among the people shoved in the carriage. He had a bad feeling. This wasn't the first time they had been separated, but he had a bad feeling about it. As soon as the doors opened for the next stop in the 4th ward, he bolted. He maneuvered around the people and flew up the steps. He hurried down the streets until he got to an ally. He climbed up the fire escape to the roof. As soon as his feet hit the rooftop, he heard it. It was faint, but it was her.

The fact that it was cut short burned his blood. He maneuvered the rooftops as he closed in on the sound. He couldn't pinpoint exactly where it had resonated from. He heard it again to his right. He headed in the direction, praying he could make it before something horrible happened. He almost missed it, if it weren't for her screaming a third time, he would have. He heard it behind him. He backed up to the edge of the roof and looked down.

There she was, sprawled out on the pavement. A man was standing over her. Blood pooled around her head, he could smell it from where he was. His body twitched with anger. Oh boy was he pissed. Just then, the man raised his foot. He heard him say "Eye for an eye honey." He then stomped on her leg. Uta could hear the bone snap. She screamed out in pain and that's all it took. All Uta saw was red.

He leaped off the building so fast his headband and glasses flew off his face. He couldn't care less. He landed a few feet from them. He crouched down and jumped at the man. He pushed the man off of her and onto the pavement. Uta tore into him. His fingers, digging into his flesh. He was literally ripping him to shreds. He didn't give him a chance to scream. Uta ripped the man's vocal chords out with his teeth. Uta had never felt such anger before. His mind could not think calmly. The only thought on his mind was the murder of this man. He didn't even want to devour on him, just destroy ever sliver of him. Uta demolished his body with blood slinging every way it could go. The sounds fof the man's organs squishing and ripping belonged in a horror film. The scene could make anyone sick, but not him, not Uta. At this moment he was a savage. This is who he was. He was an animal. He killed for fun and dined in boredom. He may be a monster, but atleast he had morals and dignity. He didn't want a single piece of the man to remain. This also was not the first time he had done this. This time, however was different. Much more anger fueled him than before. he was usually so calm and collected, but this, this broke him. This made him snap into th beast he truly was. Pieces of shit that did that to her didn't deserve to live. He was in a blind rage and nothing could stop him.

Except her, she could stop him. He had completely forgotten she was there while he had had tunnel vision. "Uta" Her weak breathless voice stilled him. His breathing was still heavy. He was still sitting on the mush of what was left of the man. His body didn't move at first, but when he heard it a second time, he knew his mind didn't make it up. He came crashing back down into reality. There he sat, straddling a mushy pulp that was once human, after that human attacked his friend. He almost didn't want to look at her. Should she see him like this? Yes. She's watched him feed before. She's seen his true nature. This, however, was different. He didn't feed, just raged. He heard the faint sound of something scraping the ground. He jerked his head to the side towards her. She was on her stomach, reaching towards him. Blood was smeared all on the ground around her. Blood dripped down her chin from her head. Her aroma hit him, along with the scent of her blood. All he could smell was blood and her. His animal instincts told him to jump her and devour her. His brain told him not to.

"Uta, please, I need help." Her voice cracked. It snapped him out of his frozen state. He blinked and stood from of the bloody pulp. He reached her and grabbed her arms. He tried to pull her up but her scream told him she couldn't stand. He helped her sit up instead. Squatting down in front of her, he checked her for injuries. "Uta, my leg is broken. I need to go to a hospital. Now." She growled the last part at him. He placed his arm around her back and under her knees. He looked at her for approval. He nodded and wrapped her arms around his neck. He hoisted her up to where she could stand. She moaned as she leaned against him for support. "I can't walk" She groaned. He easily swept her up bridal style. She bit her lip to suppress a scream. He jogged out of the ally way and tried to find help. He didn't know what to do. He was a Ghoul. Everything on him healed within seconds. She was human. She was fragile, she needed medical attention and he had no clue where a hospital could be.

* * *

Uta watched her sleep in the hospital bed. Thank god he had smelled Yuki. She was working, but when she saw Raiu, she dropped what she was doing and took them to the hospital in the 20th ward. Yuki had to take her into the emergency room. The woman at the desk tried to tell her to wait. Uta could hear Yuki yelling from outside. His heart was still racing from the whole event. He had never felt so out of control before. He had snapped. He didn't know what it was, but he didn't even want to feed while he ravaged the fucker. He was in a blind rage after seeing Raiu like that. He doesn't why when he snapped out of it, he suddenly felt hungry. Was it because of all of her blood? Was it because he craved her? He couldn't.

Her aroma mixed with her blood made her smell twice as delicious but he couldn't hurt her. He just couldn't. She needed help. He needed to get her to safety as quickly as possible. Thank God he found Yuki. She helped load her in the back of the van and sped off to the hospital. Jesus did she drive like a bat out of hell. Raiu looked so weak. The color had drained from her face and her eyes didn't want to stay open. Yuki had told him that that was what a concussion was.

He had never seen Raiu so weak before. Usually she was confident, bold, and didn't care. He had only ever seen her tear up when it was about some animal. He assumed all girls did that. This was different. She was a mess. She was hysterical. She wouldn't let him go. She kept holding on to his arm, not wanting to let go. He could only sit and watch because he had no clue what to do. He had never been in this situation before. He just reassured her that she would be okay. he did whatever she asked of him. Yuki had to physically ripped her hands off of him when she was being carted into the hospital. He couldn't go in there or people would know what he was. She didn't want to let him go. He had felt a tight grip in his chest when he watched her scream and thrash as she was taken away. The feeling worsened when he heard her raspy voice scream his name. He couldn't do it, and he hated it.

He was sitting outside on the curb with a cigarette in hand. He couldn't get his mind straight. His hands were still shaking from the whole event. He shakily took a drag. As he exhaled he smelled the stench of Ghoul. A nurse walked over to him and sneered. "What's shit like you doing here?" he didn't need this shit right now. "Fast food." He commented dryly. The nurse laughed and struck a cancer stick. "Why are you really here?" She asked after a minute. he could hear the smirk dripping from her words. "Don't worry about it." He snapped. He didn't need some lowly Ghoul prying into his business. It was quiet for a minute before she spoke again."Wait, you're not here because of that girl that came through with the broken leg, are you?"

He finally turned and looked at her. She was fairly plain. She had brown hair and brown eyes. She was slender and fit. She looked to be in her thirties. "And what if I am?" He asked, taking another drag. "You care about a human?" She pried. He could hear the venom in her words. "You work at a hospital for humans?" he shot back, with equal amounts of venom. She laughed at him. "I happen to enjoy it. Humans are so fragile. They always need so much help." She snickered. She took long drags from her cigarette while looking at the sky. "How can you stand it?" Uta asked after a pregnant pause. "Being around all the food? It gets easier. No one asks what happens to the bodies after they've passed." Uta nodded, that made some sense.

"Come on, I'll take you to her. I can sneak you in." She took a long drag and snuffed out the bud in the concrete. Uta finished his cigarettes, and followed her actions. He wanted to ask her why, but she had already begun to walk away. She led him around back of the building. She opened a backdoor and led him through the commotion of people. No one paid him any attention. Uta was slightly surprised how easily he was getting by people. She stopped at an elevator. She called it and it immediately opened. Uta was thankful there was no one in it. Once the door shut, Uta broke the silence. "So why do you work here?" She smiled at him. "I like to help people. Humans are so weak; they need help all the time. I like humans more than a food. They fascinate me." Uta hummed in response. "Why are you helping me?" She didn't respond, only kept smiling.

The doors opened to a quiet hallway. He followed her to a room two down from the elevator. She opened the door quietly. The room was dark except for the monitors on the right. Raiu was lying in a bed. The monitors on the wall behind her illuminated her. She was sleeping soundly. The beeping reassured him her heart beat was regular. Yuki sat in the chair on the back wall. Her eyes were teary as she stared at Raiu. The nurse shut the door, causes Yuki to break the trance she was in. She quickly wiped her eyes and looked at who was intruding. The nurse walked over to the bed. She checked the machines and the multiple tubes and wires coming from Raiu. She looked back at Uta.

"I can give you ten minutes. She's fresh from surgery. She needs rest." Uta nodded and stood next to the bed. The nurse patted her on the arm. Raiu stirred and blinked her eyes up at the nurse. She squinted her eyes to adjust in the lighting. The nurse told her she had visitors and then it was nap time. Raiu pushed herself up on the bed. She groaned in pain. "Take it easy hon, you're gonna be drugged up for weeks." The nurse smiled before exiting the room. Yuki walked over first and held Raiu's hand. Yuki told her she'd be back later and that she had a job to finish. Yuki brushed past him and left the room.

Once Raiu noticed Uta standing over by the door, she smiled weakly at him. "Pretty shitty way to end the day isn't?" Her voice cracked. Uta snorted and walked over to her. "That doesn't even cover it. Why didn't you stay at the station? I would have come back." She rolled her eyes. "I know, but you know me. I'm too stubborn to stay in one place." He smiled sadly at her. "I'm sorry I couldn't get there faster." Raiu blinked at him. "Uta, it's not your fault. It's nobody's fault except the guy who attacked me. You know that right?" "But it is my fault. It's my jurisdiction. I should have a better hold of it. I've been slacking. I should-" "Uta. It is not your fault. End of." Raiu gave him a stern look. When she means something, she means it. He sighed. He thought for a second before flashing her a grin. "At least you make hospital gowns look good." She snorted. "Oh my god, are you hitting on me?" She started to laugh but stopped. "Ow, it hurts to laugh." She whimpered.

She did look kind of pathetic. Her right leg was propped up on two pillows. Her head was bandaged up. She looked paler than usual. Her eyes were dilated from the drugs. Her hair was a messy halo around her. She looked like a dream. "I'm gonna be okay, right?" He laid his hand on hers. "Sleep." He commanded. She smiled weakly at him. He smiled at her. He tried his best to look okay for her. He knew she was scared. Honestly so was he.

The nurse came in to put her back to sleep. He watched her plug a syringe into one of her tubes and dope Raiu up on her drugs. He could see the consciousness fade from her. She tried to keep her eyes open the best she could. "Sleep." Uta repeated. He stroked her hand with his thumb. The nurse shooed him out once she was out. Once they were both outside, the nurse turned to him. "You're playing a dangerous game." She scolded him. She started to walk away. "Wait." He called. The nurse turned back with a raised eyebrow. "Do you think humans and Ghouls could have a successful relationship?" The nurse scrunched her face in confusion. She took a deep breath. "I think they can. It just takes the right people. Does she know what you are?" It slightly stung that the nurse said "what" instead of "who", but Uta was used to that. He nodded. "And what's your name?" She asked. "Uta." He replied. The nurse smiled a grand smile before saying, "That makes sense." She turned and left Uta standing there, swamped in confusion.

* * *

 **I'm going to try to update every Friday. _Try._ I am still revising a couple of chapters. I might actually split this all up into two separate stories. I don't know, but I'm thinking about it. Oh well. Please, please, please, review. I need to know if this updated story is worth the effort.**

 **-0**

 **p.s. Does anyone else use a Fanfiction App on their phones as well and does that effect the views on the website or does it transfer over? I use an app and I wanted to know if I should stop because the authors deserve the views.(I've been using the app for years.)**


	13. Chapter 13: All Fall Down

**Trigger Warning: Slight Violence & Slight Gore**

* * *

Chapter Thirteen

 _All Fall Down - One Republic_

It had been three weeks since the incident. Raiu was sitting on her couch. Her leg was wrapped in a cast and propped up on the coffee table. Raiu flipped through the channels. She was disinterested in everything that was on. She sighed before deciding to keep it on a music channel. She was by herself for the first time since she left the hospital. Yuki and Uta never left her side. She couldn't even pee without one of them standing outside the door. She knew they meant well and were just trying to be helpful but the whole hover-parent thing was getting old fast. She wasn't a child. She could handle her self fine. Albeit, it was hard at first, for the past two weeks she's gotten the hang of also noted that Uta had been acting strange ever since the whole incident. He would watch her and be extremely gentle, as if he was scared to break her. She rolled her eyes. He was taking the whole thing too far. She knew he wouldn't hurt her.

The front door opened. Raiu turned her head to see who it was. Yuki emerged from the entree way. "You. Act right." She pointed at Raiu. "What?" "CCG Investigators are coming to interview you. They're on their way." "What why?" Raiu sat up on the couch after she learned this news. "They're investigating your attacker. They think he was a Ghoul." Raiu's mouth fell open. Suddenly she sat up straight and looked at Yuki with wide eyes. "Yuki. What if Uta comes over? You have to stop him before he walks in the building!" Raiu panicked. Yuki swore and turned right around to stand in the lobby and wait for the kid.

Raiu sighed when the door shut. Why would they want to investigate her? She was fairly certain it wasn't a Ghoul attack. She never saw his eyes, so she guessed she wouldn't know. He didn't try to eat her though. They couldn't have possibly dug into her medical record and interrogated the surgeon, could they? Raiu was pretty certain that her attacker wasn't a Ghoul. Besides, even if he was, he wouldn't be coming back now. There was no way a Ghoul could come back from that. Uta didn't really give him the chance to and neither did she.

Speaking of Uta, she wanted to give him something for his birthday. It was months away, but she wanted to give him something special. She was thankful for him helping her out. He had been a lot nicer since her birthday. She felt as if they were closer than before. It was coming up on a year since they had been friends. It was in three months actually. She wanted to give him something special. She had her sketch book open next to her. She was supposed to be coming up with an idea of what to paint for him. She couldn't keep her mind straight on what she wanted so she gave up.

She had got distracted and started to draw his eyes. Not just his normal eyes but the eyes she saw that night, the eyes that had stuck with her. She saw them whenever she closed her eyes. She wasn't afraid of them. In fact, she thought they were the most beautiful thing she had ever seen in her whole life. She couldn't get the image out of her head. The red iris's veins danced from his pupil to the side of his face. The red glowed against the dark of his eyes and his pale skin. In some sort of twisted way, it was beautiful. Of course she had seen his eyes before. He rarely wore his sunglasses in the comfort of either of their homes. She loved his eyes, but in that moment, she truly loved them. The veins that ventured out from his eyes seemed to make his eyes more real. The way his face as scrunched up in disgust and anger caused the veins to branch out further. He was so aggressive in that moment, yet so beautiful. He was like graceful animal. Of course, she had been in a haze the whole time, but she wouldn't forget those eyes.

A knock on the door startled her from her thoughts. "Miss Nashi?" A voice called. "Just a minute." She hollered back. She shoved the sketched book under the couch cousin along with her pencils. She reached for her crutches on the coffee table and helped herself up. She made her way over to the door. She opened the door and hobbled back. She put on her best fake smile. "Hello." She smiled brightly. "Miss Nashi? I'm Marude Itsuki. This is Tokaji Soma." Two men stood at her door. The man named Marude had clean swept black hair. He had a stern look on his face. The man named Soma had loose dirty blonde hair with warm honey eyes. Soma smiled brightly at her. They were both dressed quite nicely.

"Well howdy do to you too. Now what are you too nice looking men doing looking for little ole me?" She asked, throwing her southern heritage in the mix. Yuki had told her that people will think she's more ignorant if she sounds more American she sounds, the dumber they'll think she is. The blonde snickered at her. "We're from the CCG ma'am." "CCG?" She whistled. "Who did I piss off?" Again the blonde thought she was humorous. Marude, however, did not. "We're here to ask you a few questions about your, er, incident." He motioned to her leg. She played dumb for a minute, staring at him dumfounded before she jumped with a smile. "Oh, that, well come on in. Make yourself at home, boys. Ya'll want some tea?" She turned and hobbled over to her kitchen. Marude respectfully declined, but Soma followed her for assistance.

Raiu got the feeling that this Soma man liked her. He stood awfully close to her and was always smiling at her. She fixed them both a glass of tea. Soma offered to carry them back to the couches where Marude waited quietly. She sat on the loveseat, while they sat on the couch. "So, what are the questions?" She got straight to the point with a smile. "Miss Nashi, do you think a Ghoul attacked you?" Marude asked. She made a face before responding. "You know, I'm not one hundred percent sure. I'd like to think I hallucinated the whole thing. After I hit my head the first time, everything was pretty blurry. Now I can tell you that he was very aggressive. She threw me around like I was some yarn doll." She pursed her lips and looked out the window for dramatic effect.

"It all happened just so fast. One minute, I'm making my way down the street to get home and the next thing I know, I'm on the group and this man is on top of me. I-I" She sniffled, secretly pinched her thigh to make her eyes water. Soma reached over and placed a hand on her knee. "Miss Nashi, we're here to get the man who did this to you." He reassured here. She mouthed a "thank you" to him, wiping her eyes. "Miss Nashi, did you get a good look at the perpetrator?" Soma asked her gently. "Well, I think so. It was pretty dark, but I'm almost certain he had dark hair and black eyes. He was very plain looking, like he wasn't noticed in school. Kind of a normal looking person, ya know?" Soma nodded.

Marude pulled up a briefcase onto his lap. Raiu blinked at it. When the hell did he get that? She was pretty sure she didn't see him carrying it. Then again, she wasn't exactly looking down there. Marude clicked it open. She half-assed wanted it to be a weapon, but it wasn't. It was just a boring old briefcase. He pulled out some papers and laid them on her coffee table. "Do any of these men look familiar?" It was three pictures of three different men. All three fit the description she man. She knew it was a trick though. Two of the men were people she had single handedly killed. The one in the middle, she had seen in the hangout with Uta. She knew it was a test. If they had a picture of the guy then that meant they had enough information on him to know he was a Ghoul. She knew they were trying to see if she was lying or not. She would play their game.

She pointed to the middle picture. "Can I see that one?" Soma reached over and handed it to her. She squinted her eyes at it before nodding. "Yes'sir, I think that's him." She handed the photograph back Soma. He smiled at her. Oh yeah, he was hitting on her. "Miss Nashi, what do you think happened to your leg?" The questioned floored her. She knew what actually happened to her leg. She knew why they were asking her, too. They wanted to catch her on a lie. They wanted her to tell the truth. She knew their game. She would play it til the end. "Now I told you boys, I don't rightly know. I couldn't see anything. My whole body just felt like pain, ya know?" One again Some nodded and gave her a reassuring look.

"Miss Nashi, we have some other questions. It pertains to your, er, job." Marude spoke up. Raiu raised an eyebrow. "What about it?" She said slowly. "Miss Nashi, we'd appreciate it if the information that is said does not leave this room." Raiu nodded.

"Now you two don't be strangers." Raiu called to them as she walked them out of the apartment. They both bowed respectfully once they were out. Marude began his trek to the elevator. The elevator doors opened. Yuki and Uta stepped out. Uta had his hood up and a pair of glasses on. Marude scanned with him before climbing on the elevator. "If you have any problems, don't be shy. Call me, I'll be here quicker than you can think." Some handed her a business card. She smiled and took it from him. Before Raiu could assess the situation, Soma swiped her hand up and kissed her hand softly. He winked at her before turning to leave. Cue internal screaming. She just simply smiled and waved at them. She saw Yuki giving her a disgusted look. "Welcome home Oni-chan." She smiled brightly. Yuki got the hint and immediately went inside, dragging Uta with her. Raiu closed the door behind her.

"Oh my god, get it off me." Raiu half yelled, hobbling over to the sink. She turned the water onto the hottest setting and began clawing at the back of her hand. Steamed poured out of the sink as she repeated the word "gross" over and over. "So you have a little boyfriend now? I guess he's cute." She heard Yuki say behind her. "This is not funny. It was super gross and he was being flirty the whole time." Uta reached around her and shut off the water. She looked at him, confused. He took her arm and led her to the couch. He propped her leg on the coffee table and threw a blanket over her. He plopped down next to her. "You're supposed to be relaxing, not scrubbing your skin off." He mumbled. He sounded a little ticked to her. She raised an eyebrow at him.

"Guys we may be in trouble." Raiu spoke up after a moment of silence. "What do you mean?" Yuki called from the kitchen. She felt Uta's eyes on her as she stared ahead, not wanting to make eye contact with anyone. "They asked me questions about my leg." "And?" She heard Uta mumble. "They pinned someone in your group, Uta." She finally turned to look at him. "I think they may be after you." She said quietly to him. "I'll be fine." He leaned back in the couch, seemingly disinterested. Yuki sat on the loveseat with a mug of coffee. "Start from the top, what all happened?" Yuki said, sipping her coffee.

Raiu repeated word for word the questions they asked and the answers she gave. She told them she had given them her southern charm in the hopes of looking ignorant. She included everything, even the Soma man hitting on her. She didn't leave out a single detail. When she was done, she sighed and looked towards Uta. He was too lost in thought to acknowledge her. "If they know those things about our job, then we need to notify the higher ups." Yuki ran her hand through her hair. Raiu sighed and nodded in agreement. Raiu turned back to Uta. His usual uncaring face was contorted into one of a grimace. He remembered what happened. In fact, he was lost in thought of the memory of what happened.

* * *

 _The street lights whizzed past them and Yuki flew down the road. Raiu tried to suppress her own moans of pain but it was to no avail. She mouth was pressed to the inside of her elbow. She was seated in Uta's lap. She gripped his shirt as the waves of pain passed through her body. Uta could only watch. He had no clue what to do. "Just hang on, we're almost there." Yuki called from the front. Uta could hear the distress in her voice. Uta's mind wasn't right. He couldn't think straight. He didn't even hear Rau say something to him the first time. "U-Uta?" She breathed. He jerked his head towards her._

 _"_ _I need you to do something hard." She whispered. Hard? It was already hard enough not to attack her with the smell of blood constantly in his face. If it were anybody else, it'd be an easy meal for him. She moved off of him and leaned against the wall of the van. "I need you to cut the nerve and tendon right above my knee. I'll show you which one. Ple-" "No." He immediately declined. If he got closer to that wound he couldn't hold himself back. If he got closer to the open flesh calling his name, he would hurt her. He didn't want to do that. Even though every fiber of his being was telling him to end her life, his brain told him no. A fresh set of tears streamed down her face. "Please." She begged him. "No." He repeated._

 _She gripped his shirt with her shaking hand. "Listen here asshole; I need you to do this." She pulled herself up to him. Her forehead was pressed against his. She looked him dead in the eye. "I believe in you. You're not gonna fuck this up. You're the only one who can do this. I_ _need_ _you to do this." He had never seen her so determined before. She trusted him way too much. She said she believed in him, but was that a good thing? Maybe he could stop himself. Maybe he could do it. He nodded and pried her shaky hand off of him. He moved over to her bloody leg. He kneeled down in front of it. The smell was pulling him in; it smelled so good. He could almost taste the delicious meat on her bones. She pointed to directly above her kneecap and drew an imaginary circle. "There, it's right there. Please." She breathed out. "You're going to have to stop me." He stared her down. She nodded._

 _He knelt down and tore into her flesh. Her scream was muffled by the crook of her arm. Tears streamed down her face as she cried into her arm. Her body involuntarily thrashed about. Uta held her leg down and ripped off the layer of skin. He could taste the nerve and tendon, but his mind was in a frenzy. He wanted more. She tasted so sweet and savory. He didn't want to stop. All he could think about was the taste of her. It was the most magnificent thing he had ever had in his whole existence. His mouth watered as he tore into the tendon. He could vaguely feel her hand slapping the back of his head. He couldn't stop. His animalistic tendencies had taken over. He was not in his right mind._

 _He felt her grip his hair and yank his head back. It was enough to get him off of her. His breathing was sped up. His eyes were wide at her. His mouth was slack as he licked the blood off of his lips. His head was spinning. She motioned for him to come closer. He shook his head. He didn't know if he could be near her. He might kill her. He didn't want to kill grabbed his jacket and yanked him over. She took her sleeve and wiped off his face with a weak smile. He was too in shock to do anything. "Good. Now you don't look like a killer." She said. Those were the same words she had said the night he took down the two Ghouls tailing her._

 _He reached up and stroked her cheek. He accidentally_ _smeared blood across her face. She was too precious for him to ever let her go. He decided right then that he wouldn't let anything ever happened to her again. She didn't see him as a monster of a different species. She saw him for him. He just_ _ate_ _her and she smiled at him. She was crazy. She was crazy to even associate with him and here she was comforting_ _him_ _after_ _he_ _ate part of_ _her_ _broken leg. Maybe he was crazy too. Maybe he didn't care at this point. He just knew she was special and one of the only people in the world he cared about._


	14. Chapter 14: Vermillion

Chapter Fourteen

 _Vermillion_

Uta had had a bad night. The doves had begun to prowl in his territory due to the recent events. It had taken him hours to evade them before he finally left the 4th ward and made his way to the 13th. He had nowhere else to turn to other than sleeping on the streets again. He reached Raiu's apartment only to realize his copy of her key wasn't on him. He must have dropped it somewhere. He groaned and laid his head on the door in exhaustion. He was far too tired to try and pick the lock. He backed up and pressed his back to the opposite wall. He slid down to the floor and sat there with his arms on his knees. He placed his chin on his arms and stared at the plain silver, metal door. He sighed, bummed out and tired.

He hadn't seen Raiu in a week since she was interviewed by the Doves. She had started to act strange. It was as if she didn't want to talk about it at all. If the subject even came up, she would change it. Yuki had mentioned to him in passing that Raiu would leave for hours and come back as if it were nothing. Just recently Uta and Yomo-kun had been sparing and Yuki showed up to retrieve Yomo. She told him that in the morning Raiu had said she was stepping out for a few minutes and she didn't come back for hours. Uta stayed outside her apartment building that day to see if he could catch her. This wasn't the first time he had done this since her strange activity started. She avoided him in public. It would make his chest hurt. He wasn't sure why; he was sure there wasn't anything wrong with him. He was almost certain there wasn't anything physically wrong with him. He would feel his chest tighten as if he were pushed off of a building for the first time. He would just shake it off and continue to follow her, but from above.

The last time, it felt like the sting of a quinque through his ribcage when he saw her smiling at that damned dove. He had felt the imaginary blade twist when he watched her walk up to that creep that was way too friendly with her in front of her apartment. He watched the man hold a car door open for her and help her into a black car. Uta didn't dare follow any longer for two reasons. One, this was Raiu's personal life, he would respect her privacy. Two, he refused to let himself believe it, but he was scared to see what was happening with those two alone. Nothing scared Uta, not even some damn dirty dove. Something about her being with him brought the sting of fear like bile up his throat. He would just push it away and distract himself. He was known for being a savage in the 4th ward for a reason. He would lose himself in the delicious ravaging of his food. Somehow, the thoughts would come back though. His mind would slip and the face of that fucking dove would be the face of his victims.

This only fueled him further.

The dove, unbeknownst to him, was dangerously treading on what was Uta's territory. It came as slight surprise when Uta had tried to go home and couldn't make it down the street in his territory without being attacked by the doves. The main one who chased him happened to be that asshole. Uta played with his food and sent them on a false trail many times before it became exhausting and finally fled from the ward. The 4th ward was one thing for that guy to prowl in, but Raiu was off limits.

Uta had managed to get to the apartment, only to have no one home. He had hoped she was home, but she wasn't. He wanted to be bluntly honest like he always was and tell her how he felt about the guy, but part of him wanted to keep quiet and hope she wouldn't give the guy the time of day. He didn't want her to waste her smiles on this Tokaji Soma, but rather other things. He would just out right kill him, but he was fairly certain that Raiu would be mad at him if he did. She had already given him shit for killing the two guys who pried on what belonged to him. She called him jealous of all things. Uta sneered his lip. He wasn't jealous. He was simply territorial. If it belonged to him then it belonged to **him**. He wouldn't say that Raiu belonged to him, but she was certainly under his protection. He continued to find her interesting. He had yet to understand why she smelled so much different than other humans. He could find her in crowds and from a mile away. She smelled so much different and he liked it. She was a drug and he needed his fix. He snorted to himself and shook his head. He only wanted to know her because of her scent and here he was, wanting to see her face and not with that tokaji asshat.

"Uta?" The very voice he had been waiting for, broke him from his thoughts. He glanced over to his right. There she stood in front of the elevator with torn up dark wash jeans and a fitted maroon tank top. She had a jean jacket in her hands and a boot on her leg in replacement of the cast. She hobbled over and fished her key out of her pocket. She unlocked the door and turned to him. She smiled at him and held out her hand for him. He grabbed it and allowed her to help him up. "So," She said as she held the door open for him, "How was your day?"

* * *

Uta told her about his day and she told him about her's. He left out Tokaji's name for her sake. Apparently, Tokaji was taking her to physical therapy. That's why Uta saw them getting in the car. Of course, he lied and said he happened to be passing by and saw it. He wasn't sure how she would feel about him stalking her. She explained to him that after a human broke something, they had to have what was called P.T. or physical therapy afterwards. The human had not used the limb in so long that it had become frail and their brain somewhat forgot how to use it. She explained that she was regaining her strength and sometimes it was painful. It almost fascinated him.

She told him that he could spend the night and that Yuki was out on some weekend mission. She shooed her out of her room so she could change. He stood outside her door, staring at the boring white wooden door. If nothing was wrong with her, then he wouldn't pry into her business. She never let on to believe that they were anything other than acquaintances. She told him that Tokaji was taking her to and from the P.T. to make sure nothing happened to her. He still didn't trust her being with that guy. He trusts her, which is very strange. He won't admit that he does, but he does. In all the time that she's known him, she never once flinched away from him, or ratted him out. It was as if she didn't see him for the monster he was. She was strange, but so was he.

He huffed as she was taking a bit longer than usual. He turned to the windowed wall and stared out into the city's nightlife. He stepped closer as to see the street below. All he could see was the busy streets of the ant people down below. All of them had their own lives that they lived. They all had their own stories to be told. Were they more interesting than his? At least they could live normal lives, go to school, socialize in the public eye, do whatever they please without the fear of doves breathing down their necks. These weren't things that normally bothered Uta. For some reason, since Raiu stepped into his life, he had a small craving for the normal things of life. It grew more and more every time he had to hide himself in public with her.

He wasn't one to hide himself. Hell, he had his eyes tattooed to show the world who he was. Among Ghouls, he lived like a king. He ruled over his ward with a calm hand. He didn't want the job, he just got it. He did, however, get a kick out of being the strongest. Countless ghouls challenged him and all met the same fate. They all became his dinner. The only person Uta had a close call with was Renji-kun. Uta respected him and wanted to be friends with him. Renji still avoided him, sadly. He was a truly powerful leader and nobody fucked with.

Then, there was Raiu Nashi.

Raiu never once challenged him. She never feared him. She never seemed uneasy around him when he ate. Whether she was brave or a fool, he still classified it as stupid. He would criticize her on how he thought it stupid to be around him or stupid to be close to him. He would constantly remind her that he was a monster. He was a creature that could tear her apart in seconds. He would warn her that he "ate pretty things like her". He pulled every verbal threat he could think of at her. None of it ever effected her. She would just stop whatever she was doing and smile. He grew fond of that smile. It was as if it lit the room up. It was a simple curve of her lips and yet it made his stomach drip with lava. His chest would squeeze and his throat would tighten. She made him feel strange at times. She made him feel weak.

He hated that he was weak around her. She was his weakness. She had latched onto him and grew into his sole weakness. No one could ever know that she was or he was done for. She could handle herself around lowly ghouls and humans, but not the demons he danced with. When he was away from her, he could tell himself that he didn't need her. He could say that she was worthless to him. He could make himself think that she was just another meal. Yet, somehow after awhile he finds himself back to her. Then all the thoughts against her were gone and replaced with ones about her. She drugged him with her aroma. She intoxicated him with her smile. She infected him with her personality. If he didn't get away and stay away, he wouldn't be able to.

Is this what happened to men? Women come along like a succubus and steal their sanity with their witchcraft? Women were scary. Like Raiu would often say to him, "Hell hath no fury like a women's scorn." Maybe that's why when he was younger, he was scared of _her._

"Uta?" Raiu's voice broke through his clouded mind. "Uta, you're good to come back in now." He listened to her words and sluggishly made his way back into her room. If he wanted to get rid of her sickness then he would have to face the withdrawals of said drug. It would be best for both of them if he did. Doves were on his ass and he didn't want her to get mixed up in his shit. He knew he wouldn't be able to live with himself. He could watch her from afar. He could protect her from a distance. He didn't have to be so close to her. He _wanted_ to be. Nevertheless, he could force himself to stay away from her. He opened her door and froze.

Fuck.

Maybe he couldn't.

Raiu was on all fours in front of her closet. She was tossing clothes to and fro on the floor of her closet. The red tank top she was wearing has worked itself up. He had a nice view of her healed back, along with her smooth, soft belly. Her belly bottom just barely peeked out from her grey shorts. Her shorts had slipped up from her wiggling around. There was a perfect view of her thighs as she moved her legs for balance as she leaned in and out of the closet. The shorts had moved themselves up to where he could see a piece of her ass. Just barely, could he see a sliver of her black underwear from underneath both articles of clothing. Uta snapped his eyes shut and took a deep breath. He clenched his fists, digging his nails into his palms. She was in a very compromising position. He told himself not to look and ignore it.

As soon as he opened his eyes, they immediately went back to the arch of her back. The way her back dipped and her hips wiggled killed him. He felt heat spread throughout his body and more specifically to certain areas. He felt a knot form in the pit of his stomach. Carnal thoughts filled his head. Voices in his head told him to do unholy things to her. Images danced through his head of things he wanted to do to her. God, his body was fighting itself to not jump her right then and there. He wouldn't though. He wasn't _that_ type of monster.

"Well I can't seem to find them just yet, but I know they're in here."

Raiu sat back onto her legs, crossing her arms underneath her bust. Uta had himself a nice view of every other body part and now this? If there was a God then he was certainly torturing Uta. She looked up to Uta. Her hair had mussed itself from her digging through clothes. Thick strands had fallen in her face and down her back. She looked way too vulnerable for Uta to be able to control himself. He suddenly had the strength and swallowed the lump in his throat. "What are you looking for?" He cursed himself as his voice broke. She raised an eyebrow at him before turning back to the mess of a closet. "I'm looking for those clothes you left over here. You know, the ones you slept in last time." She bent back over into the closet. She stuck her arm out of the closet and waved at him. "You can go shower or something while I look for them."

She didn't have to tell him twice before he was out of her room and shutting the bathroom door. He collapsed against the counter. His breathing was shallow and hasty. His fingers shook as he ran the tap water and splashed cold water in his face. He had seen her in that little clothing many times before, but why did this time do it for him? Why was his body suddenly yearning to have her? Sure, he had those thoughts before. Sure, he had those images cross his mind before. It only happened when he was alone with himself. He stripped himself and turned the shower head on. It took himself a very cold shower.

* * *

"So where is this place you go to with that guy?" Uta ask as he sat criss-crossed on Raiu's bed. Raiu rolled her eyes as she squeezed her wet hair with a towel. "That guy has a name. It's Soma." Raiu sassed at him. "So we're on a first name basis now?" She frowned at him and dropped the towel from her hair. Uta threw up his hands. "Okay, okay, but what do you do there?" "I told you, I'm re-developing muscle memory and getting back used to working out the muscle." "So does he memorize your muscles too?" Uta smirked. "Uta!" She screeched and chunked the towel at him. "Okay! Okay, okay, I'm sorry. I'm done. I promise." He laughed and pulled the towel from his face. She huffed and turned her back to him. His smirk grew into a smile at her precious childlike behavior.

He had calmed himself down and kept his inner thoughts on a lock-down about her. She went into to shower after him. He had found the sweatpants lying folded on her bed. He had mental battle with himself while she was showering that he couldn't act like that around her. She treated him so much better than other people did. He couldn't ruin that. She had soon come in with a towel draped over her shoulder and a wet head. He knew she didn't like talking about it, but he had to ask her about the place she went to. So he did.

Uta scooted up to behind her. He combed through her hair with his fingers. The smell of her hair products rolled off of the strands and surrounded him. He rather enjoyed where he was at that time. He began to dry her hair. He noticed her relax her shoulders. He had only asked the questions and teased her because he was truly wanted to know. He didn't mean to upset her. When her hair was mostly dry, he set the towel aside and began to finger-comb her hair again. Her hair was really soft and he liked it. "Would you like to go with me tomorrow?" She spoke up. Uta furrowed his brows in confusion. "Go where?" Raiu leaned back against him. She looked up to him. "To the P.T. place. Do you wanna go?" "Sure." She smiled up at him. Her eyes smiled brighter than anything. The green in her eyes were the most beautiful thing he had ever seen up until that point in his life. He wrapped his arms around her and flung them onto the bed. Her giggles ripped through the air and became contagious. They laughed themselves to sleep. Uta watched her face calm and breathing stabilize. He reached up and cupped her chin. He very softly ran his thumb over her bottom lip. She was a treasure that he couldn't lose. He needed to know what was going on at this P.T. place that only that asshat could take her to.

He fell asleep analyzing every inch of her face.

* * *

 **Well. I've got some 'splaining to do. I am terribly sorry for the long delay in updates. My last laptop is completely fucked. I had to wait until my income tax money came in for me to get a new laptop. I've been trying to get all the prewritten chapters for this story off of my old laptop. I cannot. I've had to re-write everything from memory. It's going to take me awhile to come up with it all because I had another ten+ chapters already written up and they're all gone. Updates are going to be slow as I am trying to remember everything I had written.**

 **Also, for those wondering: The YomoxOc is coming. Please be patient. I know what I'm going to do with that.**

 **Thank you for still reading this P.O.S. Please favorite, follow, review, etc.**

 **Thank you for sticking with it. It means a lot.**

 **-0**


	15. Chapter 15: Imaginary

Chapter Fifteen

 _Imaginary_

 _Uta didn't know where he was, but it was very bright and warm. No, the room was bright with cream colored walls and wicker furniture. Sun bathed the room from a large window to his left. The sun didn't make him warm, no. The woman with her back to him in front of him made him warm. She wore a simple yellow sundress and no shoes. She had long curled black hair that flowed down her back in waves like the sea. He reached out and grasped the waves. They were silky smooth in his hand. The woman suddenly moved in front of him and left. No! Come back. For some reason he wanted her to come back. The faceless woman left him and it made him sad. He wanted her to come back and stay with him. She was so warm and he was so cold. He heard a faint giggle and turned around, hoping to see the curvy yet slender woman. He wanted to feel her sun-kissed skin. He only saw behind him was a wall with a painting on it. It was a painting of a kakugan. It even had the blood veins shown through the skin. It was so precisely painted, like the artist had taken time to put in every detail. He really liked it, but something about it was familiar. It was something he had seen many times before, but the way the eye curved told him he had seen it before._

 _"Uta?" A womanly voice sang from behind him. He whipped around in hopes of the woman. There she stood in all of her beauty, a short but beautiful woman with luscious black hair and candy green eyes. She smiled at him gently and Uta felt his heart beat faster. "Come on Uta, they want to see you." "Who?" He asked, his voice barely a whisper. This time the godly woman laughed and it sounded so amazing. It was like the world's most amazing song played right in front of him. She calmed down and held out a hand to him. He reached out and grabbed her hand. She intertwined their fingers and pulled him to her. Something about her touch was very familiar._

 _She led him to the large bay window and pointed out to the outside. He took his eyes off of her breathtaking eyes to gaze outside. Miles and miles of grass laid out in front of him. Two tiny children with black hair ran, chasing each other in the tall grass. He looked back at the woman in confusion. "Are those," he paused, "Mine?" The lovely song played once more as she threw her head back and laughed. She punched him in the arm and giggled, "Of course they are, mine too. Takes two to tango, man." Something about the way she spoke was too familiar to him. The woman hummed and leaned against him. "I'm really glad you came up to me at that Café, love." Café? He had never met anyone at a café other than… Raiu. He stepped back from the woman and looked her over again. She looked very similar to Raiu but this wasn't Raiu. This woman was different than Raiu. Could it be an older Raiu? "Uta?" She called, tilting her head. He shook his head. "Uta?" She asked again. He looked out the window once more, as one of the children turned and stared at him. It had one green eye and one kakugan. "Uta?" No. "Uta?" No! He would never put her through the terrible struggles of that kind of pregnancy. "Uta?" NO!_

"Uta?"

Uta jumped awake. He blinked to focus his eyes on the room in front of him. He was in Raiu's room and in her bed. He breathed slowly to calm his heart rate. What kind of nightmare was that? Was that supposed to be a nightmare? Was it just a really weird dream?

"Uta?" He then realized the warm hand on his shoulder and the sitting Raiu next to him. "Yeah?" He schooled his expression. "I had a bad dream." He noticed the waver in her voice and the mist in her eyes. He gently pushed her back down and laid down next to her. "What happened?" She took a shaky breath before speaking again.

"It was in a white room. I was strapped to this cold metal table. I kept trying to get free but I couldn't. I was screaming, man. I was screaming so loud but nobody paid attention. My throat hurt so bad from it, but I didn't stop. These men were standing over me. They just watched me scream and fight these bindings on my arms and legs. Then, they had these sharp things, uh-" She paused, looking down for a moment "-scalpels, yeah those. They were cutting me open, Uta. I could feel it. It was like it was real. It felt so real, but when I looked down, there wasn't a scratch on me. Uta, I know they were trying to cut me, but it didn't work. Then, they just kind of stopped, like they were bored with me. They were trying to put this weird liquid stuff in me but I kept moving around too much so they couldn't. I was scared. I felt so scared. Uta, it felt so real it scared me." Her voice cracked as she trailed off.

She slid her body closer to his and ducked her head underneath his chin. He heard her softly whisper, "I'm sorry if this is too close for your personal space but I need this right now." He understood and tucked her closer to him, wrapping his arm around her with his fingers in her hair. Was this what it was like to care for someone? Was this hat you were supposed to do? He could tell what she dreamed of shook her, but what he dreamed rattled him as well. What was that? An older Raiu? Did his mind play some sick joke on him? What kind of sick joke puts them together and her having to go through the pains of having a partly Ghoul child, two even. It confused him to no end. He just cared about her right? That's what friends do right? They care about each other? They protect each other, right? They were only friends right? Uta told himself that they were, but a tiny voice in a corner of his mind told him that friends didn't do things like this. It told him that he didn't want to be friends with her and that he wanted more from her. He paid it no mind as he lay there, trying to make himself fall back asleep.

* * *

"You know you didn't have to, right?" Raiu leaned over to Uta with a smile on her face. The light turned green for the crosswalk and the two sides of the street merged as the people crossed. "I know, but I wanted to." He smiled back to her. She reached up and grabbed his sleeve as to not get lost in the sea of people. "Besides, I wanted to check this place out, see what's so great about it since it takes up more of your time than I do these days." He teased at her as the wormed their way through the people. He looked down to his side to see her smug look. "Maybe I'd rather spend my time in a stinky ole fitness room than have adventures with you." She laughed.

It was moments like these that gave Uta hope that things would be okay. He liked how things were and didn't want to change them. He liked how they could have casual conversation and it didn't matter that they were ying and yang. He liked it. A lot.

"It's up here, just another left, down the block and it's on the right." Uta blinked as he started to recognize his surroundings. He was far from the 4th ward but he had been to this area many times before. Before he met Raiu, he would sneak off to this abandoned warehouse district and prowl for a Ghoul meal whenever he was bored. Now when he's not busy, he just bothers Raiu. He hadn't been here in a while, but everything seemed the same. They made their way down the rest of the block they were on and turned left. There were no people on this street which struck him as odd. It was all warehouse and storage buildings. Normally it would take him a minute to cross the block and move on, but since Raiu was temporarily crippled, he had to walk slower so she could keep up. This gave him time to examine the area around them. It was mostly deserted, except for a small building towards the end of the block on the right. The building was attached to a larger building that looked like a freshly made warehouse. There were people standing on the rooftops of the buildings they passed, but as they got closer to said building, it became apparent that they were ghouls. A strong odor of rotten flesh wafted through the air. "And you're comfortable at this place, right?" Uta turned back to Raiu She hummed and nodded to him, eyeing the building as they approached it. "They're very nice to me." She mumbled.

They stopped at the front doors. The whole front of the building was made of tall windows and a glass door. He held the door open for her as she stepped in. She turned and smiled at him. "Thank you Uta, but I don't think you can come back with me. I'll be done in an hour or so. Meet me back here?" He nodded. He gave the small waiting room a once over before leaving. There was only a single woman in there who looked way too happy to be there. He watched her through the windows as she was lead through a door to the rest of the building. He began to make his way back down the street, before slipping off between two old warehouses and climbing his way to the top. There was already a ghoul, crouched near the edge of the roof. Uta calmly approached the ghoul. The ghoul sensed him nearing and snapped his neck around to see who it was.

It's devilish grin faded as he realized it was Uta. The lowly ghoul bowed before Uta in respect. Uta simply smirked. "What is that place?" He asked. The ghoul hopped up and explained, "Nobody knows. It always smells fascinating and it attracts a lot of ghouls. None of them can get inside though. Nobody ever makes past the roof." Uta nodded and plopped down on the edge of the roof. His legs dangling off as he watched the building. A figure in the distance was roof-hopping towards the building. It landed on the roof and proceeded to claw at the glass sunlight. It broke its way through. A feeling of hot acid spread through Uta's core as his thoughts went south. What if Raiu was in there with that ghoul? What if she couldn't handle herself? No. Of course she could. It was the idiots around her that would hinder her. Uta didn't need to worry longer before a screech like noise made only by a dying ghoul rebounded from inside the building. Not a second later, the body of the ghoul was thrown from inside the building and back out into the world. Uta kept his expression schooled, but inside he was shocked. It took moments to kill a ghoul and then send it back out of the window? What in the hell went on in this place? "See? No one makes it." The ghoul sat next to him. "So why is the leader of the 4th ward all the way out here?" He asked Uta after a moment of silence. "I like to get away some times." He simply responded. "But you have everything there. You're a God in the 4th ward." The ghoul retorted.

"Not everything." He responded softly.

* * *

Hours had passed and no sign of Raiu. He had been there for four hours and she had yet to come out of the building. He was beginning to worry. No other ghoul had dared to venture to the building but as the sun went down, more and more got brave enough to get close. The warehouse roofs were beginning to fill with ghouls, eyeing the building. Not too long around, Uta had caught a whiff of Raiu's aroma. He knew that way that she was fine, but she had said only an hour and it had been four. He suddenly stood on the roof, the lowly ghoul following him as he did. "You're not going to try, are you?" Uta nodded. He crouched down, readying himself to make the leap across the street and onto the roof. Just then, a ghoul got the guts and jumped onto the roof and made its way through the window. Uta took this opportunity to follow suite and leapt the distance to the roof.

He neared the window, just in time to see the now deceased ghoul fly back through the window. He peered down to see a man jumping down from the rafters. He slid through the window and made his way to the rafters, careful not to make a sound. He didn't have his mask on him so he would be screwed if he were to be caught. He walked down the paneling, with his hands in his pockets. He could peer down into all the rooms of the building and so far they all looked like a medical treatment facility. He was about to call it and leave when he got another whiff of Raiu. He followed it to a room towards the back of the facility. His stomach lurched and he slapped a hand over his mouth in order to not gag.

There she was. Her dream wasn't a dream. It was a memory. Raiu was strapped to a table with people standing over her. That's not what made him sick. They were slicing her legs and arms only to have her skin immediately stitch back up. That's not what made him sick either. What made him sick was the fact that her left arm was coated in black, along with the left side of her face. The more she thrashed, the more it spread. He could see the tears streaming down her face, but no voice was heard. She wasn't screaming. Hell, she was barely fighting the restraints. She just looked defeated. That was what made him sick.

* * *

 **So, what was that dream about? Hmm? I guess we'll find out. Song is Imaginary - Evanescence**

 **-0**


	16. Chapter 16: Unsteady

Chapter Sixteen

 _Unsteady_

Uta paced the rafters. His stomach was in sick knots at the scene below him. He felt like he would puke at any moment. It didn't make any sense to him. She had been coming here for weeks but never once spoke about all of this. She would tell him if anything was going on, wouldn't she? She told him everything, didn't she? Something was off. Something wasn't adding up.

She always seemed like everything was okay. Then again, she would be gone for hours with no recollection of where she had been for those hours. Tokaji always had to be the one to take her to her physical therapy. Was Tokaji in on this? Was the CCG in on this? Was Raiu in on this? No. She wouldn't work with the CCG. She didn't like the CCG. She even called them a useless piece of trash. There was no way she would work with them. So what exactly was happening here? Uta crouched down and assessed the situation. The people had moved onto another room and left her there to struggle against whatever was on her. She wasn't in her own clothing. She was in a baggy white shirt and shorts. He sniffed for any other scents that stood out. The smell of clean and chemicals burned his nose as it covered any other scent in the facility, even majority of Raiu's. He checked for the coast to be clear before dropping down into the room. He stood in the corner of the room. She continued to tug on the restraints as if nothing changed. He got closer and noticed right away that her eyes were different. Instead of the pretty green they normally were, they were a faded dark green. He waved his hand over her face and she made no move to recognize him. It was like she wasn't there. She seemed completely clocked out, except for her body naturally resisting whatever was on her.

He heard the sound of the doorknob to the room being held, so he quickly hopped his way back up to the rafters. He noticed the man that was behind the ghoul's dying, walking along the tops of the walls and towards where he was. He slid into the shadows and prayed he wouldn't be caught. He peered the best he could back down into the room she was in. One of the men had a syringe to the inside of her thigh. He was emptying it inside of her hurt leg. Then Uta noticed she wasn't wearing the brace. What in the fuck was going on? He pulled the syringe out and held gauze to her leg. Just then, it hit him. Like a wave of ecstasy, his body began to warm. His head spun as his vision doubled for a second. His blood flow rushed around his body as his heart rate sped up. It was the same feeling he had when he was with her in her room. His throat tightened up and it made it hard to breathe. His head swarmed with lewd thoughts of her. Why was this happening?

He shook his head to release the thoughts and focused back on her in time to see the man from before, looming over her room. From where Uta was, he could see the front of the man. He was crouched on the top of the wall. He had military short brown hair and tanned skin. He wore baggy dark clothing. The way he sat, Uta could see him gawking at Raiu like she was some piece of meat. It lit a fire under him that someone would do that. Hell, he was supposed to do that, but he didn't. He didn't think of her as a meal like he should. He thought of her as equal to him, which was a rarity. Something about this sudden feeling fueled his territorial instincts. It made him want to kill the guy for staring at what was _his._ She was under his protection therefore she was his, right? That's how it worked, right? That's how he believed it did. Maybe he was wrong. He had been wrong about many things before meeting her.

The more he saw the guy staring at her, the more he wanted to slaughter him. As much as he wanted to kick the dude's shit, he couldn't get caught without his mask. He simply waited until they moved her to another room before weaving his way back out of the roof, undetected. He leapt back over to the roof he had originally climbed on. The lowly ghoul from before stared at him in awe. "H-h-how did you d-do it?" The lowly ghoul asked in barely above a whisper. Uta ignore him and sat back on the edge of the roof, glaring at the building in front of him that held Raiu. "What was it like?" The ghoul pried. "Shit you don't wanna mess with." The ghoul shut up after that.

* * *

Uta crossed the street as he saw Raiu walking out of the doors. She looked fine. There was no black on her. She wasn't acting strange. Her eyes were normal. She seemed to be a little peppy as she smiled and waved at him. "Thank you for waiting U-chan. I'm sorry if it took a bit longer than expected." Uta stared at her with a straight face. He simply stood stone faced as her smile slowly dropped. "What?" He turned and walked down the sidewalk. She scrambled to catch up with him as his strides were faster than what she was used to. "Wait!" She hurried up to him. "I can't wobble any faster!" She yelled. He halted at the corner. She reached up and grabbed his arm. "What crawled up your ass and died all of a sudden?" He whipped around and grabbed her chin. His face scrunched him as he searched her eyes for an ounce of that darker shade. "Tell me, what time did we get to that place?" Her face was contoured with confusion and unease. "3:45" She answered slowly. "Look, if you're mad because it took a little longer than I thought, then maybe next time you shouldn't com-"

"Look at the sky and tell me it was a little longer than an hour." He whispered harshly and dropped his hand.

She rolled her eyes and turned them up to the sky. Her face relaxed as she gazed at the now darkening sky. She watched as the sky had begun to turn over to nighttime. He caught the blissful sight of her lips parting as her mouth fell open and he had to advert his eyes. He couldn't keep them away for long because as he did have a love for art, she, in this moment, was a work of art. The hair piled on top of her head was perfect; each strand perfectly tousled around as a few fell onto her face, framing it. Her wonderful green eyes were scanning the sky over head. Her tanned pink lips just sat there, _begging_ for him. The silver ring in her lip seemed to stand out in her otherwise monotone normal appearance. Her body twisted to where he could see all of her edges. She was a real work of art. "Uta?" Her voice of bells whispered. "How long was I in there?" "Four hours." She slowly took a breath in. She closed her eyes, clenching her fists. She then harshly let it out and blinked up at him. "Alright, you win." She grabbed his hand and pulled him back towards where they came. "Something weird is going on." He agreed, completely.

She was oddly quiet the whole walk back. It was odd because normally she would say something, comment on something, or have some sort of smartass remark. No, she was dead quiet the entire way back to the apartment. Uta watched her the whole way to make sure she was still there. Her being quiet was never a good thing. She was always loud and abrasive and in-your-face. Now she was quiet, timid, and shying away from people. It bothered him that she was acting so different. He understood completely why, but it bothered him.

The made it back to the apartment without incident. Yuki was sitting on the couch with a blanket wrapped around her and her laptop on her knees. She looked up as they walked in and immediately was put on guard as Raiu made a beeline for the loveseat and sat with her elbows on her legs and her face in her hands. Uta stood behind her, feeling lost as he didn't know what to do. "What's the matter?" Yuki questioned both of them. Uta shook his head, not able to find his voice to answer. Raiu took a slow shaky breath before looking up at Yuki. "Do we have an urine test strips from work?" She asked softly. "Yeah? 'Cause you never turn yours in." 'Can you get me one?" "Oh, god, are you pregnant?" Raiu clicked her tongue and rolled her eyes. "No, I'm not fucking pregnant." She raised her voice with anger. Yuki's face was of surprise and caution as she stood up and walked around to the kitchen. She opened one of the cabinets and pulled out a small plastic jar. The jar had seven paper strips taped to the sides. She walked over and handed it to Raiu. Raiu didn't have it in her hands a second before leaping up and running to the bathroom. The door slammed shut and it made Uta jump. "What's wrong with her?" Yuki asked him as she sat back in her spot. Uta sighed and walked around the loveseat. He sat in Raiu's spot and cleared his throat.

"Well, what hasn't happened to her?"

"Uta, you fucking shit, I'm being serious, what's wrong with her? Did you do something? So help me, Uta. I will-"

"I didn't do anything."

"You better be telling the truth."

"I am."

"Well then, what do you mean, you didn't do anything?"

"I didn't do anything and that's the problem."

"What?"

Yuki was about to ask again before they heard the bathroom door open and Raiu come sheepishly out. She immediately walked straight to Uta and sat down. Yuki eyed her as she got up and went to the bathroom. "Are you okay?" Uta whispered to her. She shook her head slowly. Uta winced. Yuki walked out of the bathroom with her face contoured in confusion. She sat back on the couch and started typing away on her laptop. Raiu watched her, biting her lip. Uta himself was a bit confused as to what was going on. Yuki then stopped and looked up. "Did you go partying last night?" Uta and Raiu both shook their heads no. "Well whatever this is about, I want to know now because from the urine sample it says you have heavy amounts of Zolpidem, Alprazolam, and Bimatoprost." The room held a cold silence as no one spoke for a minute. "Do you know what those are?" Raiu shook her head.

"Zolpidem is Ambien, which is used as a pain killer but for night time and it knocks you out for hours."

"Alprazolam is Xanax, which is used for anxiety but it causes you to severely mellow out and can cause memory loss."

"Bimatoprost is Luminagan, which is used for eyes whenever someone has had an eye surgery and can cause your eye color to change."

Raiu turned to Uta and spoke. "Tell me what you saw. Everything. Don't leave out a single detail. I want to know it all. I want to know what's going on. What's happening to me Uta?" Her voice began to break as she spoke to him. Yuki sat confused, yet interested in all of it. Uta swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat and spoke.

"You told you you were only going to be an hour, so I waited. Three hours later, you hadn't come out, so I climbed through the roof to see what was taking so long and…"

* * *

 **Double Update? Fuck yeah. Well shit has completely hit the fan, maybe. How will she react? Song is Unsteady - X Ambassadors**

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	17. Chapter 17: Afraid

Chapter Seventeen

Afraid

The soft whimpers echoed off of the tile walls. They were barely drowned out by the water crashing onto their wet skin. She shook as she cried. It wasn't a beautiful teary cry. It was ugly and harsh, much like the truth she had just been told. Her breathing was quick and heavy. Her sobs were muffled by her face being pressed into his chest. The steam around them coated their skin, much like the water and the truth. He couldn't bare to look at her in such a state. It felt like someone had ripped open his chest and tore out his insides. Just hearing her so hysterical brought tears to his own eyes.

Everything was ugly.

Everything was sick.

Everything was _wrong_.

Uta leaned his head back against the tile wall. He stared at the water crashing down on them. The girl lying in his arms was a complete wreck. He had never seen her so damaged or so _broken_ before. She wasn't even this bad when she was attacked. Sure, she was down for awhile, but she picked herself back up claiming that nothing could bring her down. Here she was a crying, wet mess. The worst part was he felt like it was because of him. If he had withheld the information then maybe she wouldn't be sad, maybe she would still have that stupid care-free goofy smile on her face that he came to like so much. She was so messed up because of him. He chose to tell her almost everything. He decided to leave out the strange feelings he had gotten around her twice. He told her what he had saw, not what he had felt. It all made him sick to his stomach. Seeing her break from his words made his chest shatter.

* * *

 _"Then you came out as if nothing was wrong."He finished. Yuki had a hand over her mouth. Raiu had tears in her eyes. She refused to look at him since he started talking. She stared straight ahead of herself. Her mouth hung slack. A lone tear fell from her eye. Yuki reached over and laid a hand on Raiu's knee for comfort. "Raiu, you're cold."Yuki mumbled. Raiu just stared in front of herself, lost in a daze. She suddenly stood and took a staggering step. "I don't feel so good." She mumbled. Yuki shook Raiu's hand.. "Raiu?" Raiu made no move to respond. Raiu attempted another step but her leg gave out underneath her. Yuki caught her using her quick thinking. Uta stared at her confused. Yuki cursed under her breath and laid her down on the ground. Raiu was frozen in place. Uta was completely dumbfounded. He had no idea what was going on. Yuki threw her hair up into a ponytail and turned back to him._

 _"She's going into shock."_

 _Yuki ran into the bathroom. He heard the shower start. Yuki hurried out and darted to Raiu. "Bring her to the bathroom." Yuki commanded. Uta swept Raiu up and carried her to the bathroom. Yuki told him to set her down on the ground. Yuki slipped her shoe and boot off of her. Uta was startled when Yuki yanked Raiu's pants off. He whipped around so he wouldn't see anything. He jumped when he felt his jacket being pulled off of him. He jerked back as Yuki pulled it over his head. "What are you-""Don't question me." Yuki barked at him. He was stripped of his shirt as well. She ordered him to get in the tub. He didn't question her. Together they hoisted her into the tub with him. Her face was still frozen in the same defeated expression. Yuki told him to hold her as she sprayed Raiu with the hot water. "She needs to get warm and this is the fastest way.""Why can't you be in here with her?" He asked. "Because Ghouls have a higher body temperature therefore you'll get the job done quicker." He remained silent after that. He just watched the girl against him. He would have thought she was dead except for the fact that he could feel her heart pounding through her skin. The water spilled her hair into her face._

 _He ran his fingers through her hair and out of her face._ _They were both drenched by the time she came to. Yuki hooked the showerhead back up and nodded at Uta before leaving the room, shutting the door behind her. He watched her as she curled up against him. On the inside, he was excited by how close she was. Her skin left a trail of fire as she slipped her hand up his chest and around his neck. She looked up at him with pleading eyes. "What am I?" He didn't know what to tell her. He was speechless. He just simply smoothed the hair out of her face. She pulled herself up and buried her face in his shoulder. Her body shook as she cried. He wrapped his arms tighter around her and just let her cry._

* * *

He wasn't one for comfort. He didn't know how to comfort people. He himself had never been comforted for anything before. He never needed to be comforted before. He was much like her when he just brushed things off. He never let things get to him. _Except her_. She had gotten to him. A part of him hated himself for being entranced by her aroma that day at the café, but that was a long time ago now and she was a part of his life now. _She was his life._ No. He only needed himself and no one else. _Lies_. Occasionally he needed her in his life. _Lies._ So why did he show up to her house all the time? _Because he wanted to be near her_. Because he liked the smell of her. _It was intoxicating_. It was interesting. _She was intoxicating_. She was interesting. _He trusted her with his life._ He trusted her opinion. _He cared about her._ He cared about her well being. Why was she the first idea when he needed a safe place? _Because she was a safe place for him._ Because she had a safe place for him. Why did he get these strange feelings around her? _Because he was infatuated_. Because they were friends. _Because she was precious_. Because she was human. _She was like a delicate flower._ She was a shard of brittle glass. He didn't like seeing her so upset. _It made him feel upset._ It made him feel guilty.

When she began to calm down, he helped her out of the tub. A knock on the door startled her and made her slip. He caught her and helped her up. He turned off the shower head and opened the door. Yuki stood there with a sad expression on her face. She handed him folded clothes then turned and walked away. He turned back and she had stripped off her tank top. She was a sad beauty, but he didn't need to think about that right then. He separated the clothes and handed her the ones that seemed to fit her. He turned around to change and give her the privacy she deserved. The same privacy she had been stripped of at the facility. He shook his head of the water and felt a hand on his back. He turned to see her standing behind him. She looked so innocent. She had on baggy sweatpants that hung off of her hips and a spaghetti strap tank top. She had big eyes looking up at him. She looked like a scared doll. He relaxed as he saw her scared expression. She grabbed at the fabric on his back when she wrapped her arms around him. She buried her face into his ribcage. He curled his arms around her head, holding her there. He didn't know how to comfort someone, but he could try his best.

He led her to her room. She decided to sit on the floor in front of her window. He sat behind her. He trailed his fingers through her hair. Her shoulders relaxed as he weaved his fingers through the waves of her hair. The aroma that lifted off of her hair calmed his nerves. He could see her reflection on the window glass. Her face was full of sadness. She glanced over at his reflection. "Am I ever going to have a normal life?" Her voice was quiet. The once mighty lion Raiu had shrunk to a meek mouse. He faked the best smile he could and placed his chin on her shoulder. "Of course you are Ray-chan." She flashed him a smile. "No, I don't think I will. Something always happens and I can never live peacefully with this world." Her eyes were downcast. "Yes you can, just not the way you think." She turned around to face him. She sat cross legged facing him. "Who says living peacefully means quiet and simple?" She tilted her head in confusion. "Well no one…" She trailed off. "So don't. Be wild. Be outrageous. Be loud. Be care-free. Be complex. Be Raiu Nashi." She smiled at him sweetly. She looked like she wanted to laugh, but didn't. "It's not that easy Uta. I've tried that." "Yeah and that's how we became friends." She grinned at him. He felt his chest warm and it only fueled him further.

"You're right." "Damn right I'm right." She laughed at his words again. "No but seriously, how in the hell are we going to get passed this science-fiction bullshit?" He took her hands in his. He took a breath. "Live with me." She blinked and raised an eyebrow at him. "Live with you." She repeated. Uta felt his chest seize and his heart begin to beat faster. Was this it? Was this when he laid his heart on his sleeve? The smile stayed on her face.

"You won't have to worry about a thing. You'll be under my protection in the 4th ward. No one would dare harm you. No would try to take you from-" "Uta. Think this through. The 4th ward is infested with Ghouls and I'm a human. I'm safer here than I would be there. Hell, if that guy No Face caught me, we'd both be done for." He grinned at her. "Ray, I am No Face." "No..." She scrunched her eyebrows. He just stared at her with a smile of no lies.

"Well shit, I'm best friends with the damn leader of the 4th district." She huffed and rolled her eyes. She shook her head with a smile. He laced their fingers together. "Stay by my side and you'll never have to look over your shoulder in fear again." She licked her lips. God she was so beautiful. She leaned closer to him. Her face was much closer to his. She bit her lip. "Uta, is this your way of asking me out?" He was caught, but he didn't care.

At that moment, he felt infinite. At that moment, he felt like the universe had been created for this moment. He felt like everything had fallen into place for this. He wasn't normally the sentimental type, but God did he never want this moment to end. His brain was going a million a minute with thoughts of the possibilities of them together. In his head none of them were perfect and that was okay. Nothing was perfect, except for her. Her face was so close to his that he could see every detail of her and he soaked it all in. He took it all in: the way her lips curled up in a devilish smirk, the way her eyes crinkled, but still had all the beauty, the way her pale cheeks suddenly had a pink flush to them, the way her hair framed her face, the way the ink color of her hair made her eyes stand out more, the way her eyes stood out and were filled without a drop of sadness or hurt, but instead eagerness and playfulness. His eyes flickered down to her lips. God did they look so delicious. This might be his only chance for a real kiss. He had to take it. "Maybe." He mumbled as he leaned in close to her.

 _Wham!_ Raiu's door slammed open. They jumped apart. "Raiu, Tokaji is here. He said he needs to speak with you." Yuki called from the doorway. Raiu mouthed a what-the-fuck to Yuki. Yuki shrugged her shoulders and whispered "Get in there. He wants to know why he didn't take you to your physical therapy today." "Shit" Raiu whispered harshly. Yuki turned and left the two alone. Uta swallowed the acidic bile in his throat. His skin crawled with fire for two reasons: pleasant warmth from Raiu's closeness and anger for the asshole in the other room. "What are you going to do?" He asked. She squeezed her eyes shut. He reached up and tucked a loose piece of hair behind her ear. Her eyes popped open. "I have an idea, but I'm gonna need your shirt."

* * *

 **Well,** ** _that's_** **how she took it. Things are starting to happen and not in anyone's favor except maybe about 5% in Uta and Raiu's favor. Song is Afraid - The Neighbourhood. Also, I listened to Eternal Youth by RUDE throughout making this chapter. It really helped with some of the detailing.**

 **I do apologize for the late update. I have recently moved and so I'm still settling in. We don't have internet yet so any posts have to be done via hot spot from my phone. Posting will become a little tricky with that as well as that fact that I have a new job as well and my hours are never consistent. Be that as it may, I will still try to post as often as possible.**

 **Thank you for being patient with me.**

 **-0**


	18. Chapter 18: WDYWFM?

Chapter Eighteen

 _What Do You Want From Me_

There was a number of reasons as to why Uta got along with Raiu as well as he did. One of the reasons happened to be her sneaky sly tendencies that reminded him of himself. She was a slippery minx, much like himself with ones he didn't care for. The more he was with her, the more he saw himself in her. He had noticed how she relaxed around him but alert enough to still pull one over someone.

Raiu adjusted the boot on her leg as she sat on her bed. She had acquired his shirt with a pair of shorts that were almost hidden under the shirt. He was left shirtless and she said it was all a part of her plan. She mussed her hair about. She grinned up at him and hopped off of the bed. She ran her fingers through his hair, pulling the headband off of his head. She tossed it onto her bed. She hobbled over to the door and motioned for him to follow. When he reached her, she swiped up his hand and interlocked her fingers with his. He wasn't sure how to react. His skin warmed where she touched him. His mind stopped working properly and his body ran on autopilot as he followed her out into the living room.

The normally calm and serene vibe that floated about the living room was altered and dampened by something darker. On the couch sat a man with light hair, sipping a cup of coffee. He smiled at Yuki a kind of fake smile that didn't reach his eyes. Another reason Uta liked Raiu is that she told him ways to tell if someone is lying or is faking something. The man was bouncing his left leg. He held his coffee in his right hand which meant he was right hand dominant. His left leg shook because it was an unconscious nervous tick. His fingers danced across the lip of the mug. His eyes stayed on Yuki meaning he was trying to look attentive but the glaze in his eyes meant he couldn't care less. Takaji's gaze shifted to Raiu as she cleared her throat, drawing attention to herself in order to announce her presence. The glaze in Takaji's eyes melted as his eyes lit up in eagerness. His lips curved into a sick smirk. The shaking in his leg died down to a twitch. The change in Takaji unnerved Uta. Uta watched him with much restraint as Takaji's eyes drank in her bare leg and tiny figure swallowed up by his shirt.

"Sorry about that, we were in the middle of something." Raiu crossed her arms and leaned against Uta. Her words curled around Uta and sent cold down his spine but warm through his veins. Her plan was to allude to them being together? Did she notice the way Takaji acted around her as well? "I'm sorry to disrupt you; I just wanted to check up on you." Takaji's smirk fell for a second before spreading to a smile. "Why?" She tossed back in as she raised an eyebrow with a no-nonsense look on her face. "You weren't here when I came for you to take you to your appointment. I was-" "Oh, sorry about that. My _boyfriend_ walked me to the place. Wasn't that nice of him?" She held an emphasis on the word "boyfriend". She slipped her arms around his hips and nuzzled her face into his side. Uta's skin was on fire but he played along. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders. He stared Takaji down with cold, stern eyes. The smile dropped off of Takaji's face. "I see, well, I think it's best that I should transport you in the future to your appointments..." "About that," She picked her face off of his side, "I was feeling a little woozy so I went to a doctor and while I was there, I had them check my leg out. They said I was good to go ahead and take the brace off tomorrow. I don't need the P.T. appointments anymore. Thank you though." She smiled sickly sweet. Uta actually had to restrain himself from smirking at the downfall of the man in front of him. He was a little proud of how well she put it. Takaji adjusted his tie and cleared his throat. "Well, I see. Then, I guess I'll be on my way." The dove stood. He turned and picked up his briefcase. It was a box. He was a box carrying dove. This could get ugly. "We'll see you out." Raiu called as the man started towards the door. Raiu grabbed Uta's hand and pulled him towards the door. Takaji turned back towards them. A small, sly smirk curled at his mouth.

"Those are interesting eyes you have." Takaji directed it towards Uta. Uta's composed, schooled expression didn't flinch at all at the remark. He was used to people saying that to him, but normally when a human was close enough to say that to him, they became his snack. He pulled his lips apart to reply with a snarky comeback but Raiu beat him to it. "Tattooed. Hot right? He's the type to stare danger in the face and laugh. Super hot." She placed a hand on his chest, staring at Takaji, daring him to say something. He simply nodded and mumbled a quick goodbye before departing. Raiu watched him leave before he disappeared into the elevator. Raiu threw the door shut with a grin. She turned to Uta and winked at him. She slipped past him and tossed herself onto the couch. "I'd say mission success." She beamed at Yuki. Uta followed her and stood with his hands in his pockets. "What mission?" Yuki asked. "Operation: Creep-B-Gone." Raiu retorted. Yuki chuckled.

Uta couldn't take his eyes off of Raiu. His mind had a million thoughts race through him. Colors of reds, pinks, and light blues streaked the canvas of his brain. The female sitting near him has just pulled off a successful façade of a relationship without him having to open his mouth. She then acted as if it were nothing and proceeded on about her life. He had to give it to her. She was talented in the theatrics. He couldn't get over how well he liked how she looked in his shirt. It felt like a territorial dominance. It felt like power to him. He liked it.

He liked it a little too much.

* * *

Her hair was in a mess. She had attempted to clip it out of her face. Her hair had fallen loose slightly after her rash movements. There was a slight sheen of sweat on her forehead. She stepped back and bit her lip. Her eyes scanned the canvas in front of her. She whipped the wet from her forehead, only to leave a streak of purple. Her arms were decorated with colors all the way up to her forearm. She then leaned over and dipped her hand into a bowl of black paint. She slapped her hand on the canvas and ripped it down towards the corner, leaving a hand streak. She picked up the dirty rag from the ground and whipped off the access paint from her hand. Seemingly satisfied, she backed away from the easel.

Uta sat on her bed, watching her. The scene she had created landscape style was one of a delicate meadow of flowers with trees in the background and luscious clouds. The mid-ground was filled with various blurry wildflowers. The foreground was shaped as if you were looking out of a window or into a piece of glass. It blurred and slightly distorted the image. The hand print on the window gave him the impression of being trapped. To him, the picture meant that someone was trapped in a world of black and white and wanted to explore the outside world of color. Was she trapped? Did she feel trapped somehow? He watched her pack up her utensils and clean up her mess. She guided the easel over to the far corner of the room to set and dry.

She turned and picked up the discarded towel on the floor, wiping her hands with it. She sighed in exhaustion and sat next to him on the bed. He reached out and swiped the towel from her hands and tried to wipe off the paint she had carelessly gotten on her face and neck. With all of her moving around, she had splattered paint on her neck, face, and even ears. She looked down as she picked paint from underneath her nails. Uta had gotten most of the paint off of her face and moved to her right ear. She started pulling the clips and bobby-pins out of her hair, causing it all to fall straight into her face. He ran his fingers through her inky black hair, pulling it out of the way of her ear. Her lime eyes flickered up at him. He kept his eyes on his task at hand. He had a compulsion to have his hands touching her soft skin and this was the only cover he had for it. He scratched at the helix of her ear. She ran a hand through her hair, dragging all of it out of her face. Her hair fell behind her head, grazing the top of her shoulder blade. "It's getting long isn't it?" She moved her ear out of his grasp.

He slid his fingers through her tresses and held onto the ends. "A little." He commented. "I can't believe I've let it get this long. I normally cut it. It gets in the way you know?" "I like it longer on you." She scrunched face up. "I normally don't. It's at the weird length that it's hard to keep it up and out of my face." Her two venom eyes gazed into his. "Then don't. Leave it down. Come with me. You won't have to keep up a false image anymore." Her acid green eyes melted his red irises, drawing him in. She frowned at him. "Uta, I can't just drop everything and leave. First of all, that's too suspicious. Doves will be all over that. Secondly, I still have a job. Thirdly, it's going to take time. Everything takes time…" She trailed off as her voice got quieter.

"I'm not used to taking time for things." He replied honestly. He couldn't. Ghouls couldn't stand around and wait. Ghouls didn't have time. They had to keep moving to stay hidden. God forbid the ones that decided to try to live among the humans. He couldn't understand why Ghouls would want to do that. He couldn't imagine not being able to so much as breathe around a human least he be caught. That was, until he met her. It always came back to her. Everything he knew beforehand was somehow altered by her. She calmed him down and made him not want to do the things he normally did. Instead of binging on a stupid human that wandered too far into his territory, he preferred to bother her. Instead of watching his subordinates savagely pick on the bones of the fallen human, he preferred to watch her paint. Instead of coming home smelling of blood and ghoul stench, he now came home with her sweet aroma on him. That, however, was a good thing. The more he was around her, the more his scent stuck to her. This was a good thing so that any Ghouls worth their salt would get one whiff of her and avoid her by a kilometer.

A smile tugged at her lips as her eyes crinkled into the beautiful smile that graced her. "I know." She whispered. God she was just…just…just so much! Her beautiful smile left an acid drop of warmth through his chest. He felt heat crawl up his ears. The hair on the back of his neck stood up. He wasn't sure if he had just never noticed how amazing it was before or if this one was just too genuine to ignore, but her smile made all the worries go away and make him feel comfortable, sane, and safe. It was gone much too quick for his liking. She sighed as there was a knock on her door. She stood and walked towards the door to open it. Uta cursed whoever was the cause of her warmth to leave him. He knew it was Yuki just the smell before Raiu could open the door. Just like that, his aloof mask was perfectly placed back on when Raiu spoke to her. "Yes?" a bit of disdain dripping from her voice. Yuki rolled her eyes. "Since you're all better now, I've called 'Mother' and set you up with a job. It should keep you busy so that the CCG fuckers don't mess with you for now." "Oh yeah?" Raiu crossed her arms and leaned against the door frame. "Yeah it's one of the top ten criminals, sent straight from the top. 'Mother received it yesterday and was going to give it to someone else but thought you'd be the best one for the job." "Why is that?" "You're going to have to go undercover and sneak into a club to get to him." Yuki said before turning and leaving. "Wait, why am I fit for the job?" Raiu called after her. "Because he likes 'em feisty." Yuki called back.

Raiu mumbled "not a fucking prostitute". And shut the door. She huffed and returned to her place next to him on the bed. "Undercover?" Uta asked. She rolled her eyes and frowned at him. "Yeah, it's not too often we have to do this but sometimes we have to sneak into places and have a façade in order to get to our kills." She stretched her arms above her head and fell backwards onto the bed. "You a good actress?" He snorted. She smirked up at him. "Oh honey, you don't even know." She reassured him. She played it off as nothing but for some reason Uta was worried.

Uta had a bad feeling about this and he didn't like it

* * *

 **Hello all! I am not dead! It's been a long time between posting for a number of reasons: 1) I have a new job! My schedule is never the same each week. 2) I have moved! I've moved in with my best friend/beta writer. 3)We don't have internet yet so we're stealing it from other people.**

 **I'll still try to write and post when I can. My apologies. Song is W.D.Y.W.F.M? - The Neighbourhood. Please Review.**

 **-0**


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